Through The Looking Glass
by James Spookie
Summary: Dumbledore believes he's found the answer to how to end the war with Lord Voldemort by pulling a warrior from another dimension. Reworking of my original story of the same title.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I took this story down a while ago because it wasn't going the way I had originally intended. When an author questions his own plot, things aren't going right. But i think i figured it out now, so I'm going to try it again. This will take time and a lot of reworking because the overall plot is unchanged, but I'm eliminating a few side plots and reworking it for the outcome I had originally envisioned. I hope you enjoy this, because now I'm enjoying writing it.

1.

Halloween, 1981

"Lily! Take Harry and run! Get out of here now!" James Potter roared as he stood between his wife and child and the foul evil beast that even now stalked towards him menacingly, wand rising up.

"James, come with me!" Lily Potter shrieked, holding her crying child to her chest protectively. "Let's get out of here now!"

"Lily, GO!" James shouted more desperately as he kept his eyes on the stalking predator before him.

The beast began to laugh, a wickedly high cruel laugh that sent chills up Lily's spine as she began to back away, all while her husband stood firmly between the monster and his wife. James Potter had always been a show off, but tonight, he was not trying to impress his wife, but to protect his family. Her heart pounded in her chest as she prayed that someone would come and help them, or give them the chance to get away safely together.

James had told his wife to run, but she couldn't seem to move. All she could seem to do was watch in abject horror as her husband, James Potter, Lily's one true love, was blasted in the face by the most horrendous poisonous green light, and his body fell in a heap like a marionette who'd had its strings cut, his life force extinguished once and for all. Lily turned and ran up the stairs, the heinous laughter of the most vile wizard in history followed her as she turned and sprinted up the stairs, clutching her crying son close to her breast.

Lily slammed the nursery door shut and locked it, knowing full well it was a weak obstacle at best. She tried to apparate twice and failed. It was obvious that the Dark Lord had erected anti-apparition wards around the house to prevent her escape. She grabbed one of her child's baby rattles and tried to make a portkey, but it failed to activate. She was trapped, and she and her son were going to die.

It was in that moment that Lily realized that her family had been betrayed. There was only one way they could have been found. She and James had taken steps to ensure they would be hidden from the Dark Lord and his followers, but now it was clear that Sirius's plan had failed. They had trusted the wrong person with their safety, and Lily cursed the name of Peter Pettigrew and prayed with all her heart that the rat would burn in the deepest and hottest pits in Hell.

Footsteps approached and stopped just on the other side of the nursery door. Instinctively, Lily shielded baby Harry with her body from the wooden shrapnel that was violently flung towards them from the door before she turned to face this monster. She would not die cowering. She would protect her child until her very last breath if that's what it took.

"Hand over the child and step aside, and I may spare your life." Lord Voldemort commanded.

The manifestation of evil held out a long thin, skeletal hand toward Lily who was backed against the wall with no where to run, and no hope of escape.

"No." Lily said firmly, her wand raised at the handsome pale face of Lord Voldemort, who smirked at her attempt to stop her, his eyes blazing red with malice. She was trembling badly, but she refused to cower. Not now, not ever. She sent out half a dozen curses all of which the Dark Lord slapped away with his wand as if they were mildly annoying insects, sneering at her malevolently.

"You are brave though foolish. And you have power; the air around you is simply crackling with energy. Strange, considering you are a Mudblood." Lord Voldemort noted thoughtfully. "I can see now why Severus wishes me to spare your life. Perhaps he was not misguided in his desire for you."

Lily remained standing with her wand held up, aimed at Voldemort's face, Harry clutched to her chest, where he shrieked with fright. Lily's expression had become slightly puzzled now however at the mention of Severus. She hadn't heard that name since she had graduated Hogwarts School four years ago. She thought it must have been some kind of trick, and sent another string of powerful curses towards the beast that intended to hurt her child. Voldemort again slapped away her efforts, smirking at her attempts to stand against him.

Voldemort tried to catch a glimpse of the fabled savior but the mother was doing all she could to keep the child away, for what little good it would do. Voldemort scoffed inwardly, still not truly understanding why he was here. How could this mere child be his downfall? There appeared to be nothing remarkable about the squirming and screaming wretch. Nothing at all.

And yet, the Dark Lord knew it would be unwise not to heed the warning. He had gone too far to secure his immortality to allow anything to chance. Death, the ultimate enemy of true power, was the only thing to fear, and Lord Voldemort had seen to it that he would never succumb to it. This was why this child needed to be culled.

However, the woman was making this more difficult than it should have been. He could just kill her and be done with it, but he had promised his servant to spare her. Severus Snape had proven to be invaluable first with his knowledge and ability with the under appreciated art of potion making, but also a true artist with the darker aspects of magic. Only Bellatrix could rival Snape's love for inflicting pain.

It had Been Severus who had learned of the Prophecy while spying on Albus Dumbledore. Severus had gone further still and worked his way into the ranks of Dumbledore's resistance. He had then learned of Dumbledore's belief that two boys fit the parameters of the Prophecy, and that they had been put into those two families had been placed in hiding. Families who had given birth to male heirs at the end of July. Two potential children who could fulfill the prophecy. One of which had already been dealt with by the Dark lord personally.

Severus had earned this reward, and Lord Voldemort always rewarded his faithful. Severus had never asked for anything except this woman. If that was all Severus desired, than Lord Voldemort would see to it that his most loyal, his most faithful would receive what he desired. For Lord Voldemort was a benevolent lord. However… this woman could not be allowed to potentially birth any other threats to his reign.

The most vile wizard in a thousand years sneered down at the woman, and gave a flick of his wand. Lily managed to cast a shield charm and stop the acid yellow curse which felt like a freight train against her protection. She had never scene a curse like that before. It was acid yellow and it had smelled like sulphur and decay. It had smelled. Spells didn't smell!

Lily lifted questioning eyes to the Dark Lord and he locks his sinister red gaze on her. Their eyes locked and Lily realized immediately what a monumental mistake she had made. At once she felt an invasion in her mind that was like a stampeding dragon. She managed to break the connection after but a single moment, but when she averted her eyes, it gave the Dark Lord the moment he needed to end this farce.

Lily felt herself being tossed into the air before she came crashing down hard against Harry's toy chest. She knew that she had broken ribs, and her wand had snapped. But even more troubling was that she had lost her hold on her son. Voldemort was on her and that strange acidic yellow spell struck her abdomen.

The pain was surprisingly dull, like a swift hard punch in the stomach. But the blood that began pooling between her legs was extremely troubling, as was the fact that she seemed unable to move. Her legs refused to obey her commands and she could only watch in horror as Lord Voldemort turned towards her child and brought his wand to bear as the child began screaming like she had never heard before.

Lily had heard her son cry many times in the year he'd been alive. He'd cried because he was hungry, or needed a changing or was sick. But none of them rivaled the shrieks he uttered now. He was screaming so loud that it hurt her ears. It was almost primal.

As she looked at her child, sitting on the floor just inches away, she was astounded to see him beginning to glow. Harry had shown his affinity to magic almost from the beginning, banishing things he didn't want, or summoning things he did, usually the cat.

But this… this was something more than just calling things from across a room. This was

Raw power being called upon. It was the most frightening thing she had ever seen. It was almost as if her fifteen month old child was about to use his magic intentionally. To protect his mother. Voldemort either didn't seem to think he was in any danger, or just didn't care what was happening. He simply turned and gave a mirthless laugh as he touched the tip of his bone white wand to the child's forehead and pronounced the curse that was intended to end the child's life for good.

There was a resounding crack like that of a thunderclap, and an explosion of blinding green gold light. The wall behind the crib exploded outward and a shrill scream of pain assaulted her ears. In less then a second it was all over. Silence bombarded her ears, and after a moment, her vision returned. She was assaulted by the cool autumn breeze that sent chills up and down her flesh. She began to cough as she breathed in the dust from the shattered wall. In front of her, lying amongst the devastation was the corpse of the most feared wizard in all history. His robes had been shredded and there was blood congealing on a thousand wounds. If she hadn't just witnessed it, she would have said he'd been dead for days.

And just beyond lie the tiny motionless body of her child.

She pulled herself across the floor and reached out hoping against hope that she would touch the tiny little fingers and they would wrap around her fingers, or that she might hear the soft coo that always told her that her child was content. But there was nothing. His fingers were limp and cold. He made no sound at all. He appeared for all the world to be sleeping, but Lily knew in her very core that her child had died.

Lily Potter was found roughly fifteen minutes later by her husband's long time friend, Sirius Black, sobbing hysterically as she clutched her lifeless child to her breast.

* * *

15 YEARS LATER

Albus Dumbledore had never in all his one hundred twenty years ever felt so lost and powerless. He had exhausted just about every option he knew of, but now after only two years, the war was practically lost. It was only a matter of time.

The second Wizarding War of Great Britain had erupted with no warning, and the side of the light was losing badly. For fourteen years, the magical world had lived in peace and prosperity until seemingly out of nowhere, Lord Voldemort the most evil and powerful Dark Lord had somehow resurrected himself and gathered his former forces, and more. The Ministry was ill prepared for any kind of conflict especially after fourteen years of mismanagement and political corruption, and though they had fought back, it was clear that it wouldn't be long before the government fell. Dumbledore's own group, The Order of the Phoenix was also being decimated. Even with having a spy within Voldemort's Inner Circle, Lord Voldemort and his forces were too strong.

To make matters worse, there had been a prophecy foretelling of someone who could have vanquished the Dark Lord. However, the final act of the First War had been to kill the prophesized savior. It had been Voldemort's undoing, or so it had appeared for fourteen years.

When it was clear that Voldemort had in fact some how managed to return from the dead, Dumbledore had tried negotiating for help from other countries, he had even begged on hands and knees in front of the International Confederacy of Wizards, but no one wished to become involved with England's internal affairs as they called it. Even with his warnings that once Voldemort took over he would no longer be contained, no one wished to assist England. It was clear to Dumbledore that his country was now reaping what it had sown after years of prejudices and snobbery in regards to their neighbors.

So Dumbledore had turned to the only resource left to him.

For a year and a half he had spent combing every single book and scroll he could find that would offer any kind of solution, or give him the answer of how Lord Voldemort had managed to evade death. Dumbledore knew that the Dark Lord must have some kind of weakness, something that the side of light could exploit in order to turn the tide of the war.

The Hogwarts Headmaster had looked in the darkest of tomes for any kind of answer and found several promising leads that inspired small glimmers of hope but nothing that he felt would end the war and Voldemort's evil once and for all.

Until late one night roughly two months ago. Dumbledore had stumbled on a book that appeared to be hand written and had no title. Some pages had faded beyond any sort of recognition. Most of what the book dealt with was old rituals, many of them long forgotten. Yet one ritual had caught Dumbledore's eye, and held the potential to turn the tide of the war. It was too good to be believed.

First of all, there was the cost of the thing. There didn't seem to be one. Dumbledore really didn't like that. Most Dark rituals came with a cost. Some sort of sacrifice to be made on the part of the caster in order to make the spell work. It was one of the defining qualities of a dark spell. This one didn't seem to have one, which made Dumbledore very cautious, and had led to a month of hard research.

He had studied the ritual until he felt he could recite it. The thing itself looked fairly straight forward. A potion, a few important items, and a certain individual all put together on a particular night, and then… the possibility of hope. The Headmaster had looked for any sort of ritual that was similar so that he might discern what the sacrifice might be. But he had little more to go on than when he'd first found the ritual.

Dumbledore felt his very old heart pound in his chest as he read through the ritual once again. He knew that this might only be the first step in ending the war. But maybe it was the very step they needed. Dumbledore looked around his office and sighed. If what his spy had told him earlier that morning was to be believed, the Ministry would fall soon, and when that happened, Hogwarts would be next. Dumbledore would rather give up his life in this world than let Voldemort take the school and turn it into his own training ground for future Death Eaters.

Dumbledore clenched his fist, and once again, he felt as if he had found the answer, and was ready to begin preparations. And almost as suddenly, the doubt crept up on him. Many questions occurred to him.

Was he moving too fast?

Was this really the answer?

Would this solve problems, or create bigger ones?

How would this change the world at large?

And most importantly, how would this affect the people who needed to be directly involved?

Dumbledore sighed, and removed his half moon spectacles to pinch the bridge of his long crooked nose and let out a deep sigh of exhaustion. He knew he couldn't just blindly push forward. He wasn't all powerful, or even close to omniscient. He had made mistakes in the past, and people had suffered for his foolishness. He had sworn never again to let that happen, and that was why he knew he had to speak to someone about this.

And so, Dumbledore rose to his feet, slid the book into his traveling cloak and left his office. He knew that there was only one person in the entire world who would listen to him, and be completely honest with him. As quickly as he could manage, Dumbledore made his way through the empty castle and out onto the grounds of the school. In moments he'd reached the tall wrought iron gates, and the edge of the wards of the school. With a breath, and a spin, he'd disapparated away to find his old friend, and hopefully the answers to his doubts.

* * *

Minerva McGonagall's cottage was very simple in its elegance. Tucked away in the Scottish Highlands, it had a very storybook quality to it. Dumbledore found his deputy headmistress tending to her modest garden. She was quite a bit younger than he was, by forty five years. They had been friends for longer than either of them cared to admit. She was extremely loyal to him, but more importantly, she was always frank with her opinions, and never failed to tell him if she thought he was wrong about something. There was no one Dumbledore trusted more than McGonagall.

"Albus? This is quite a surprise." Minerva said as she caught sight of him. She rose stiffly and brushed her hands on her apron as Albus stopped to admire her chrysanthemums.

"Sometimes I wonder if perhaps I should have hired you as our Herbology teacher." Dumbledore smiled. Minerva shook her head and gave him a rather wry smirk, though she slipped her hand into her apron pocket and gripped her wand.

""I do wish you would attempt growing Black Irises."

Minerva relaxed her stance as Albus gave the code phrase. It had been a private joke between them for nearly fifty years and one they only shared when they were alone.

"Much to depressing a flower for my garden, Albus." She smiled. "And you know I never would have accepted the Herbology post… Gardening is my hobby, and I would never attempt to grow Devil's Snare, or Mandrakes. My word, the screaming…"

Albus chuckled softly.

"You look tired." Minerva remarked. Dumbledore heaved a heavy sigh and nodded.

"I feel tired." He replied.

"Well, I know you didn't come here to admire my green thumb and it isn't like you to show up unannounced. So, out with it. What has happened?" She asked, looking apprehensive as he slipped his hand into his robes and pulled out an ominous looking leather bound book and handed it to her. She gazed at it feeling a bit of dread in her stomach as she stared at the worn ancient looking cover.

"I am afraid to even dare hope, but I think I might have found something to help us. However, history has I think finally made me wiser in my choices. I need your opinion before I move forward." Dumbledore stated.

What is this? Where did you find it?" McGonagall asked, looking more than a bit uncomfortable as she held the book, looking as if it might come to life at any moment to bite her. Dumbledore gave her a sympathetic look. The book did have a sort of ominous feel to it, though it wasn't exactly dark, just... it felt like something you should be careful handling.

None of that is important, Minerva." Dumbledore said reaching out to open the book for her. "What I found in it is. It could be the very answer to our troubles, but... I need you to read it and tell me what you think. I fear I may just be trying to convince myself that this is the solution when in reality..."

"You could be wrong, and you're afraid this could hurt us instead of helping us?" Minerva said, looking a bit heartbroken that her friend was filled with self doubt.

"Perhaps it will become clear when you've looked it over?" Dumbledore sighed. "I shall put the kettle on."

It took nearly three hours for Minerva to read the manual over. When she was finally finished, she set the book down with shaking hands, and quickly grabbed her cup of tea and drank to large swallows before she spoke.

"This…" she said anxiously. "This is… Albus, is this even possible?" She looked aghast.

"These are instructions Minerva. I have to believe that it has worked at least once, as this has been written. Though I am aware that many things have been written down that have no basis in fact." Dumbledore replied.

"But, this is taking a serious risk. What if… what if you get it wrong? It's not as if we can ask for exactly what we need." The Transfiguration teacher pointed out, shutting the book. "And what of the cost to you?"

"I am unclear on that part." Dumbledore admitted. "Normally, the sacrifice would be made quite plain, as it would be part of the ritual, but this… I can only guess that it would be a more or less simple switching spell, so to speak."

"A switching spell? Are you mad?" Minerva asked with horror. "You're talking about ripping a person out of their own world and bringing them here! You're talking about changing not only our world but another one as well. What about their families? Their friends? I know that we're desperate, but… I don't know Albus. This seems very risky, not to mention the morality of it. To rip someone from the world they know and ask them to fight our war…"

"This is why I came to you." Albus gave the weakest of smiles. "I was ready to begin when all these questions occurred to me. And it isn't permanent."

Minerva looked up into the tired blue eyes of her longtime friend. "You were going to attempt to summon the boy."

"Or girl." Albus nodded timidly. "As you said, we have no way of asking for exactly what we need. I think that is why we would need her there. The individual would be tied to her, if the text is to be believed.

"Oh Albus no. Hasn't that poor woman been through enough? Do you really want to do this to her? She's sacrificed more than anyone to that madman, and…" McGonagall began but Dumbledore held up his hands.

"I am more than aware of all Lily Potter has lost. I also know that to ask this of her, after all that she has been through is cruel at best. But look around Minerva. We are losing this war. I have no idea how Lord Voldemort managed to escape death. I have no idea how to beat him. If we don't do something, I fear that he will make his final push, and I, the only one he seems to have any respect, or fear of, will be gone. We are desperate. That is why I wish for you to accompany me this evening

You can't be serious?!" Minerva gasped.

"I just want her to hear me out, and given everything, I feel she would be more willing to listen if you were there as well. If she refuses, then I will respect her wishes. But I believe that this might be our very best hope. I need you there to help her to understand our situation, and exactly what this may entail, and what it would mean if we succeed." Dumbledore explained.

"Albus, I don't know if I can. She… Lily… We have no business asking anything of her. We failed her. We all failed her. She doesn't trust us, not since that night and we've done nothing to try to change that."

"That is not true. There are people she still has faith in, no matter how far apart they have become. Though she's built a wall around her heart, it still is as big as it ever was. And perhaps this may help her to…"

"NO!" Minerva slammed her fist down. "Do not try and justify this to me, and don't you even think of trying to play on her broken heart for your own ends."

Minerva stared her friend down until he nodded and sighed. An uneasy silence fell between the two and Minerva stared at the book between them. The war was becoming more terrible than the first one, and their world needed hope if it had any chance of surviving, much less winning. Perhaps Albus was right, and this could be the answer, but… to affect so many lives… was it morally right? The answer was no. But, on the other hand, what if it actually improved the lives of those involved. It was possible. It was also possible that they could actually bring something far worse than Lord Voldemort into their reality. Were they so desperate to attempt something so risky?

That answer was a resounding yes.

Minerva sighed and again looked at the book that held the potential answer to so many questions.

And this… savior?" Minerva began. "What happens if they want no part in our troubles? What will you do then?"

"The book says that we can reverse the ritual and send anyone back to their world. This won't be permanent, and if our… guest, for lack of a better word, should choose to not help us, I will not keep them here. I will apologize, thank them, and send them home. But we will only have one opportunity to do this Minerva. Everything has to be perfect in order for us to have the best chance at calling upon someone who not only will be willing to help, but capable of it as well." Dumbledore explained.

Minerva sighed and shook her head. "I think this will not end well, but I can't think of any other way." She said heavily.

"Then you'll come with me to speak to her?" Dumbledore asked, unable to contain his gratitude.

"Gods protect us, but yes." Minerva sighed. "But I'm only there to keep you from playing upon her heart break. You will stick to the facts."

"That my dear is why I came to you first." Dumbledore smiled softly.


	2. Chapter 2

Lily Potter sat on the crème colored sofa in her small sitting room with her bare feet tucked underneath her as she sat reading the latest copy of Popular Potions Monthly. Her long silky red hair was piled on top of her head in a vain effort to keep cool. It had been a dreadfully hot summer, and it was still early July. She could have easily used her wand to make the house more comfortable, but she didn't like using magic for such mundane things. To her, some things just should be left as they were, like the weather.

She was only just beginning to think about what she wanted to make herself for dinner when she felt the ripple of the property's wards. She didn't panic because there was no reason to. firstly because there was only a handful of people who knew where to find her, and secondly, every reason she had ever had to be a danger to anyone had been taken from her years ago.

With a soft sigh, Lily set aside her magazine, and got to her feet and went to her front door to see who in God's name had decided to come calling, though she held onto a small hope that it might be an old friend or two. While she liked the remoteness of her home and the solitude, sometimes it did get a bit lonely, and a friendly face would be rather welcome.

And a friendly couple of faces is exactly what she got. They just weren't the ones she wanted.

Her arms folded over her chest and her demeanor became cold.

Good Evening Lily." The woman spoke first, offering a light smile. Lily thought it was a bit strange to see so much kindness in professor McGonagall's eyes, especially as the woman was one of the sternest teachers Lily had ever known.

"Professor." Lily replied callously.

"It has been quite a long time since I was your teacher, I think you've earned the right to call me Minerva." Professor McGonagall said, which made Lily smile ever so slightly. The two women embraced, though it was stiff.

"It has been far too long." Albus Dumbledore said with a sad smile offering his hand in friendship. Lily ignored it, preferring to stare coldly into her former headmaster's eyes.

"If you've come to ask for my help, you can turn right around and leave." Lily said flatly.

"Most unfortunately, we have come for your aid." Dumbledore sighed. "If there was any other person I could ask, I would."

"Well you already have my answer." Lily said as she started to turn around. "Have a pleasant evening."

"Lily, please." McGonagall called out pleadingly. "We would not have come if we could have avoided it."

Lily turned to glower at her two former teachers contemptuously. Her eyes narrowed and her jaw clench as she turned her focus solely on the old man. "You have a lot of nerve to come asking me for anything. I asked only one thing from you afterwards. Just one. And you… ignored me. You protected…."

Lily's temper began to rise as she began to shout, her hands balling into fists. Dumbledore had the good sense to lower his eyes in shame.

"You protected that… that… greasy, conniving, two-faced backstabbing worm!"

"Lily, I know that I hurt you. You trusted me, and I let you down" Dumbledore began, but Lily refused to listen.

"So long as that bastard remains free and unpunished for what he did, I won't be bothered to lift a finger to help you." She said, her tone dripping with acidic venom.

"Not even to save our world?" Professor McGonagall said quickly, reaching out to grasp Lily's shoulder. "Albus found something, and I think you should hear us out."

"Why?" Lily snapped.

"It involves your child." McGonagall stated.

Lily stiffened, her eyes bulging in disbelief, as she stared back at her former transfiguration teacher.

"My son is…" Lily stammered and McGonagall nodded, knowing what Lily was about to say.

"We are aware of what happened to your son." Dumbledore said gently, his eyes shining with guilty tears for his part in that tragedy. "And it wouldn't be your son exactly. it would be a version of him."

Lily stared back in confusion, her questioning eye moving between Dumbledore and McGonagall.

Dumbledore sighed, and then motioned towards the house. "Perhaps it would be best if we went inside and spoke of this. It is a rather complicated discussion."

Lily stiffened again but Dumbledore shook his head.

"You will not have to see Severus or anyone else from the Order if you choose. If you say no after you have heard me out, we will leave you in peace." Albus promised. "But I beg you to at least listen. Listen to what I have to tell you, and if you choose, after you have heard everything, not to assist, then I will swear an oath to never darken your doorstep so long as I draw breath. but if you choose to assist us, it will provide us with a way to really hurt Lord Voldemort."

Lily stared into his once bright blue eyes and noted how sad and tired her old Headmaster looked, and something within her told her to at least hear them out. The patient nod Professor McGonagall gave her just reinforced what Lily was already feeling.

Lily had not been living under a rock all these years and was very aware of how the war was going. The paper and the wireless were filled with stories of death and disappearances. She knew that Voldemort was quickly gaining ground, and likely would have Great Britain in his grasp within a matter of months. As much as she disliked Dumbledore, she hated Voldemort far worse. If she could strike a mortal wound to that beast…

Besides, if Dumbledore was coming to her for help, he must truly be desperate.

With a grim look, she stepped aside to allow them into her home.

Six hours later, she was looking at them with utter disbelief.

"I don't know what to say to all this.." Lily stammered. "How can you possibly justify any of this without knowing definitively that the person you bring through would benefit from it, much less ask him to fight a war that is our responsibility? And what if they want nothing to do with us?"

"I have tried to find another option. Some way, any way to fight back, but Lord Voldemort is growing ever stronger, and he has proven beyond a doubt that he has conquered death in some way. And I just have no idea how he managed it. At the very least, this could give people hope. Someone to look towards to bolster their spirits and encourage them to not cower, but to fight back."

"You want to rip some poor person from their world… from their friends and family, to be your puppet hero?" Lily looked appalled. You think you can play god with people lives in this world, and now you want to do it to someone from another world?"

Dumbledore shook his head.

"No." He said sadly. "No that is not what I wish at all. And it is why I have not attempted this until now. I could have done it on my own of course, but that is not how this war will be one. I will not sacrifice anyone else if there is any other way. And that is why I am here."

"I don't understand." Lily said, looking between the two professors.

"Lily, the ritual is quite straight forward, as I said. But, as we've stated, there is no sure way to get exactly what we need. But, what if we could manage to get something close? We need your child specifically. I believe that even though this person lives in a different world, that they are still tied to you. This child's mother, or father, could be you. Our worlds may be vastly different, but some things remain constant."

"The ties of blood." McGonagall said, looking impressed by the logic of it.

"If I performed the ritual, there is a good chance that I would get someone who could be what we need, but there is also a good chance I would get someone useless. But, if it was you. Your blood powering the ritual, then perhaps we could get the hero that was prophesized. Your son… in a way."

"A hero." Lily murmured, remembering a conversation from what seemed a lifetime ago when she held her child in her arms a few hours after he had been born. Her husband, the love of her life had leaned down and kissed her softly before he caressed his son's head and called his first born a hero. A child prophesized to destroy the evil that had been growing back then. And he had, or so it had appeared. Lily's son had vanquished Lord Voldemort. And then he had died.

"What if this person… this alternate can't do it? What if the person you pull into our world doesn't even have magic within them? Will you sacrifice another life? Will you try and find another version of your fabled hero?" Lily asked heavily.

"No." Albus shook his head. "This isn't a definitive answer, merely something to aid us. The true answer is still out there, ever elusive, but I will not rest until I discover Voldemort's secret."

"And what if he wants to return to his world?" Lily asked. "Will you be able to send him back?"

"I believe so." Dumbledore nodded. "If I am not mistaken, the book did describe a way to reverse the ritual and set things back. I have no intention of holding someone against their will. If we ask this person to help us and they refuse, I will send them back to their world."

Lily began pacing, thinking over everything. She almost stepped on her cat, Gracie, who was trying desperately to get her to notice that her food dish was currently empty. The idea was ludicrous of course, but, what if it could really help? And Dumbledore had just said that he could send this poor soul back to their world. In essence it seemed no more a bother than stopping someone on the street to ask directions. Ok, yes it was slightly more than that, but if this person refused, they would return home.

But Lily's heart was pounding in her chest at a single thought. Her son. It would be a chance to see her son. Yes, it wouldn't exactly be her son. But a version of him. After all, her blood tied her to him across worlds. Oh gods that logic of it was maddening. Her child, but not her child.

"If I agree, what exactly would you need from me?" Lily asked.

"You will need to be present of course, and you will need to offer some of your blood for the ritual, to make sure it is your child who we bring through." Dumbledore explained.

"When?" Lily asked, her voice shaking.

"A couple of weeks." Dumbledore said. "I think our best chance to succeed would be on the thirty first."

"His birthday?" Lily looked intrigued.

"Yes." Dumbledore nodded. "I also need to gather some hard to find items, and I would also like to reach out to a few others to have them present."

Lily's head shot up and her eyes narrowed dangerously. Dumbledore held up his hands. "He will not be present. I swear it. I actually wish for Sirius Black and Remus Lupin to be present. I think that perhaps, having a few more people who knew and cared for your son would only help pull someone closer to what we need into this world. They may also prove useful in other ways."

"I…" Lily started, and then hesitated. Dumbledore looked up interestedly. "Will you let me contact them first. Allow me to explain it to them?"

"As you wish." Dumbledore nodded. He got to his feet, with McGonagall following his example.

"Thank you Lily." Dumbledore said solemnly. "I know that you lost your faith in me, and No one regrets more what happened than I do. Perhaps I can try to regain at least a little of that faith from you in the coming days."

"Time will tell." Lily said stoically. Dumbledore dropped his head sadly, but gave a slight nod.

"Thank you for listening." McGonagall said, embracing lily as an old friend. Lily returned the gesture. She had always like McGonagall. She was quite kind, underneath her stern teacher's façade, and she had been a rock for Lily in the days following the end of the first war.

A moment later, and the two Hogwarts professors had left her home, leaving Lily on the front porch staring blankly down the path as crickets sang to her. After a few moments contemplation, Lily turned and went back inside the house to clean up. She found her black and white cat, Gracie upon the table sniffing interestedly at the empty tea cups while mewing her irritation at her lack of supper.

Lily lifted the cat and placed her on the floor with a few idle scratches to the cat's head and scolding her for being up on the table to begin with. She filled the feline's bowl and then began preparing herself an evening meal, but stopped suddenly, gripped by a sudden urge. She quickly made her way upstairs and into her bedroom where a framed photo sat on her bedside table. Three, smiling back at her as she lifted the frame, was herself, much younger standing alongside a man with the messiest black hair, and the most charming smile. The man she had loved from the first moment she had laid eyes on that September first ages ago. Her husband, James Potter.

Her eyes were drawn to what James held in his arms. A bundle with two chubby arms poking out, and a tuft of massy black hair and two striking green eyes. Her child. Her first, and only child, little Harry James potter. Named for Lily's father, and of course her husband. The two had been her entire world and when they were taken from her, she had barely been able to breathe.

Tears welled up in her eyes now as that familiar pain wrapped around her chest. She lay down, clutching the photo to her, unsure of what she should be feeling. It wasn't going to be her child. Not the one she had conceived with James. Not the one she had given birth to. Not the one she had held or nursed or cherish. But… a version of him. A chance to see what kind of man he might have grown up to be…

Which led to far too many questions and far too many theories. It was enough to drive any normal person quite insane. She pushed it all out of her mind, deciding those questions could be answered later.

Instead she lifted the photo and stared at it. She remembered the day the photo had been taken. It was at Potter Manor, with James' parents. Charlus had been overjoyed at meeting his grandson, and Harry had adored the man, especially his mustache, which Harry kept trying to grab. Dora had been delighted by Harry as well, calling him her little mister mushy face. It had been the last day they had seen James' mother and father alive.

Lily gave a weak smile as her finger caressed the photo as she remembered her husband and child.

"I miss you both so much." She said as she was overcome by sad loneliness and began to cry herself to sleep, something she hadn't done in over ten years.

* * *

The building that stood on the outskirts of London was quite run down to the average eye, and the sign out front had said that it was scheduled for demolition. However, it had been scheduled for demolition for three years now. No one ever complained about thanks to the charm placed on the sign that mad ordinary people immediately forget about it all.

The building had once been some kind of warehouse, but now it acted as a center of operations for two men who were determined not to let Voldemort or his followers take Great Britain without a fight. While it looked run down and ready to fall at any moment, inside was an entirely different story. The first floor housed a training gym, complete with fighting dummies, and a dueling platform. There was loads of storage and a complete potions lab.

The second floor had rooms for guests or allies, a sort of prison, and a central strategic planning room. The building could house a small army, yet only two people used it now, and currently, they were both going over some new intelligence they had received.

Remus Lupin was thin with thick reddish brown hair and sharp dark eyes. He sat in his favorite chair, going over notes, and idly thinking about a young woman who he'd like to see again soon, provided his partner gave his blessing.

The other man, Sirius Black stood near a window, his brow furrowed as he stared at the new report he'd gotten from one of his less than reputable contacts.

Many would say that Sirius was just as good looking as he had been in school. He was lean and muscular, but not overly so. His long dark hair was tied into a ponytail to keep it out of his face while his dark piercing eyes took in the notes in his hands. He still had a boyish, rather charming smile, when he used it. Those moments were very rare these days.

Sirius had been one of the more notable up and coming Aurors in the Ministry near the end of the first war, along with his best friend James potter. The two were virtually unstoppable, until the night James was murdered. Sirius left the Auror corp. in the weeks following the end of the war, claiming he had lost his taste for fighting dark wizards. He had lived in near solitude until Lord Voldemort had risen again.

Sirius was one of the first Dumbledore had contacted when he reformed the Order of the Phoenix. Unfortunately, Sirius and Dumbledore didn't agree on a number of subjects, the most dividing had been that Sirius felt that if someone bore the Dark Mark, they should be put down like the animals they clearly were.

So it was that Sirius, and Remus Lupin had formed their own group to oppose Voldemort. unfortunately, after two years, they were still alone, as they had never recruited anyone. On the other hand, they had never lost anyone in any of their operations. So far...

Sirius sighed heavily again as he went over the information on their latest target. Augustus Rookwood was not quite as powerful as he had been in the First War. fourteen years in Azkaban prison had dulled his edge, but that didn't mean he was not a threat. He was one of Voldemort's top enforcers for a reason. Rookwood was known for being not only inventive in his cruelty, but merciless as well. Sirius knew that tonight would be one of the more difficult assassinations, but if they succeeded, then they would have dealt a pretty serious blow to the Death Eaters.

Both Sirius and Remus knew they could never defeat Voldemort. The beast had somehow returned from the dead after all. but their hope, their goal, was to prevent Voldemort from gaining more followers by striking fear into those who wielded fear. Sirius just wished it was working better.

Sirius pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes shut. he'd been reading these notes over and over again until the words began to melt together. He needed a break, and maybe some food.

When he opened his eyes again and glanced outside, he saw something that made him pause. It had been quite a while since any owl had come anywhere near them, and here was a proud looking barn owl dipping lower and heading right for the window he was standing next to.

Sirius tapped the glass with his wand to remove it, as there was no other way to open it, and the owl soared in, coming to rest on the table in front of Remus, who looked completely shocked.

"Hello." Remus said rather stupidly. he glanced at Sirius who could only shrug.

Remus leaned forward and accepted the letter hanging off the bird's proffered leg. Free of its burden, the owl gave a loud screech and took to the air, but didn't leave, but rather took perch in the rafters to wait. Sirius paid the bird no attention as he watched Remus unfold the letter and begin to read.

Oh... wow." Remus stated after a moment. he looked to his friend, and handed the letter over. Sirius snatched the letter, and read it for himself.

 _Dearest Remus,_

 _I know that it has been a very long time since I have written, but it feels longer since I received any correspondence from you or Sirius. I miss you both dearly, and I hope that you are both being safe._

 _I writing to you now because I need you both. Dumbledore came to visit me today with a truly confusing proposition. He believes that it could be just what our world needs to end the war. After hearing him, I find it hard to disagree, but there are so many questions. I agreed to help, but I should very much like it if you both were there. I won't say anymore here in case the owl is intercepted. But I beg you to come as soon as you can. I will prepare you rooms._

 _All my love_

 _Lily_

"What do you think?" Sirius asked. Remus looked up with a bit of surprise in his eyes.

"Well, actually, I'm a little shocked you're still standing here. I would have thought you would have already apparated there."

"I..." Sirius started but Remus shook his head.

"There's no need to explain to me. I know." Remus smiled gently as he got to his feet and crossed to his friend.

"What do you think you know?" Sirius looked up suspiciously.

"Sirius, I've been you friend for ages. I know you. I know how you feel about her, and I don't blame you. Lily is a lovely woman." Remus smiled as he placed a comforting hand on his best friend's shoulder. Sirius's face fell slightly as he turned his attention back to the letter.

"I also know that because of your love for James, you felt as if you were betraying his memory for feeling the way you do, and that's why you've barely spoken to her in the last seven years."

"Eight." Sirius corrected. "Not that I've been keeping track."

"Of course not.' Remus chuckled softly. "Her letter sounded pretty serious. She needs us, Sirius. And I have to admit that I'm curious what the old codger could have said to Lily to make her trust him enough to go along with whatever plan he's concocted this time."

"Yeah." Sirius said, his brow furrowing in curiosity, again looking at the letter. "I suppose Rookwood will have to wait for now."

"I wouldn't worry about him or any of his moronic friends." Remus nodded as Sirius tossed all his intelligence regarding their target onto the center table. "They'll be getting their due soon enough. Think she'll make her famous chocolate cake?"

"She invited you, I think it's a safe bet." Sirius rolled his eyes.

* * *

Lily stood leaning against the railing on her porch as she sipped a glass of iced tea staring blankly at the line of trees that surrounded her cottage. It was a very picturesque scene that often filled her with inspiration. Today however, that was not the case.

For three days now, she had barely been able to think of anything except the ritual Dumbledore wished to perform in order to save their world. That was an immense burden to place on a single person, especially as that person would not be invested at all in their troubles, and would likely resent them for tearing them out of their world and into this one.

The only thing that continued to pull at her to help Dumbledore in this clearly foolish endeavor was the idea, the possibility to see a version of her son. To see what kind of man he may have become had he not been killed when he was still just a baby. How could she, how could any mother not want to satisfy that curiosity? It was selfish, she knew that, but her heart ached for it.

She was just beginning to contemplate the infinite possibilities again when the wards rippled, and she stood up a bit straighter, looking down the garden path. It took a minute, but two large canines appeared out of the trees.

It was a strange sight. A giant mastiff and a grey wolf traveling together, except lily recognized both animals and a soft smile split her face when the animals stopped in front of her porch, each panting in the heat.

"I'm so happy to see you both." She said.

The two animals began to morph and grow into two men who she hadn't seen in far too long. When they finished their transformations, Lily leapt into them and hugged them both fiercely.

"How have you been?" Remus Lupin asked as he returned his friend's embrace.

"Good, though I might have been a little better if my two friends would have thought to write to me every so often." She looked pointedly at Sirius Black, who was intensely interested in the stone path he stood on.

"We've been a bit busy." He mumbled.

"Too busy even for me?" Lily pressed, enjoying how Sirius squirmed. Remus merely chuckled enjoying the show. Any time Sirius got put on the spot and taken to task for anything, Remus couldn't help but have a good time, especially when lily did it, as she had this uncanny ability to turn Sirius into a shamed child.

"I'm sure that Sirius will try harder to be a better friend going forward." Remus said, patting the mutt's shoulder.

"The fact that he's here is enough of an apology for eight years of near silence.' Lily said with a playful scowl. She gave Sirius another hug, and led them both into the house where she served them tea.

"Your letter was pretty cryptic." Sirius said after lily sat down.

"What exactly did he find?" Remus asked his own curiosity piqued.

Lily took a moment to ready herself before she began to explain all that Dumbledore had shared with her a few days ago. It took far less time for her to explain as she left out a lot of the details and so forth. When she was finished the two men sat silently gaping at her.

"So, what do you think?" She asked after a moment or two of stunned silence.

"Has he gone mad?" Remus asked. "How could he possibly think this is a good idea?"

"It might work." Sirius said thoughtfully.

"What?" Remus turned to Sirius, shocked by what he'd just heard.

"There's a lot of factors to consider of course, and as Lily said, there is no guarantee that the person he pulls through will be any good to us, but, if we could manage to get someone who perhaps knows how their Voldemort survived, it could at least point us in a direction of how to destroy ours. We could get a person from a world similar enough to ours that we might get some answers at the very least. I think asking someone else to fight our war is at the very least, rude. But asking them about their war could prove useful. Again, provided their world is close to ours." Sirius explained.

"We're ripping someone away from their home!" Remus pointed out.

"No one is arguing that point, and it was mentioned that we could send them back, right?" Sirius asked, looking up to Lily who nodded.

"I wanted to make sure that it was possible before I agreed." Lily said. "I couldn't live with myself if we took him from his family. It would be cruel."

"I'm in support of this." Sirius said, getting to his feet and going for another glass of tea. "But only for the knowledge it could bring. Asking anyone to fight a war that is not their own, I won't have any part of that. If they offer, I won't turn down the help, but I won't ask."

"I don't know, there's just too much that could go wrong." Remus shook his head. "The possibilities…"

"Are infinite.' Lily finished Remus's thought. "He could be a she. He could be from a world without magic. He could be a psychotic maniac. We just don't know, but…"

She took a breath and looked imploringly at Remus.

"He could be the hero we were promised when my son was born." She sighed.

Remus nodded and sat back on the couch to think it all over.

"When is this whole thing to take place?" Sirius asked.

"On the thirty-first." Lily said, running a hand through her long red locks. Sirius forced himself to look away as his insides twisted up with guilt. He hated himself for everything he felt towards lily. She was his best friend's wife. The love of James's life. Lily was off limits and that was that.

"Why then?" Remus asked.

"Dumbledore believes it will help somehow. " Lily shrugged. "He wants both of you there as well. He thinks it will help as well. And… I need you there with me."

She looked at Sirius as she said this. The mastiff Animagus didn't even have to think. He nodded that he would be at her side without question.

"In the mean time, I have rooms for you both. It'll be nice to have company and you two might manage to stay out of trouble for a few weeks." Lily gave a knowing smile.

"Oh you know us, Lils." Remus chuckled. "Trouble is our business."

"And business is booming." Sirius laughed.

Lily simply shook her head at the childish antics of her friends thankful that no matter how much time had passed, some things remained constant.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The moon was only just rising over the mountains as three individuals reached the wrought iron gates of Hogwarts where they were met by Professor McGonagall who actually smiled at the trio, something she had never done that they could remember while they had been students here years ago.

McGonagall accepted embraces from each of her former students before leading them up to the great castle.

"She looks the same." Sirius said looking up at the castle.

"Yes, she does." McGonagall said softly. "But it's far more peaceful without you causing trouble within her walls."

"So you're saying you're bored?" Remus asked. McGonagall shook her head as she stifled a laugh. Remus gave a humored look to Sirius who chuckled softly.

"I think I prefer that you have become someone else's problem." McGonagall said honestly. "Though I'm not terribly fond of your methods, you two have done far more against our enemy than both the Order and the Ministry combined."

Neither man spoke, but gave their former teacher a grateful look.

"Minerva, why are we here tonight? I thought we were doing this tomorrow." Lily asked curiously.

"As did I, but Albus insisted that you three come here tonight. I am not sure why it was so urgent, unless it has to do with the timing of the ritual itself." McGonagall replied.

"Are we actually going through with this? Remus asked. "I mean, we're tearing someone out of their world and…"

"Remus I have had this very same argument with Albus over the last two weeks. Lily and I both questioned the morality of it, but Albus has assured us that should this person wish to return to their world, we will send them back right away." McGonagall said to stifle the conversation that didn't seem to have any sort of end.

"Remus," Lily said, taking his arm. "We've talked about this until we're blue in the face."

Remus noted how she was trembling likely due to her growing anxiety about meeting her child… that wasn't actually her child. Gods it was confusing. Remus and Lily had talked late into the night a few days earlier after Sirius had gone to bed. Remus remembered how Lily had sounded when she revealed what she hoped they would accomplish.

"I just hope that he's happy." She had said as she stared up at the sky with its infinite number of stars, so like the possibilities they might achieve. "Whoever it is that we pull through, I hope with all my heart that he's happy and healthy with a wife and babies of his own. I want o find out how, if there was a war in his world, how they managed to defeat their Voldemort, and then send him on his way. Knowing that he was going back to a good life, it would be like my son grew up and got the life I wanted for him. Does that even make sense?"

"In a way." Remus nodded. "I think it's instinctual for a mother to want the very best for their child. Since you were robbed of the chance to see your son grow up, it's understandable that you'd want the version of him we meet to have that happiness."

They sat silently for a few minutes before Remus voiced a concern of his own.

"Have you ever considered a version who doesn't know magic, or… could be a dark lord himself?" He wondered.

Lily shuddered but nodded. "The first night after Dumbledore proposed this whole thing to me, I thought about it. What if this person was worse than Voldemort? What if he came through from a world in which he was nearly defeated and preferred this one? I've thought about every possible version and I know I haven't even scratched the surface. I've even considered writing Dumbledore and telling him to forget it all, but I can't. I just can't let this go. I know in my heart how selfish it is of me, but I want to see him.":

"Or her." Remus pointed out.

Lily smiled and shook her head. She then hauled off and punched Remus right in the arm. Remus laughed loudly as he massaged his arm where her fist had made contact.

"Where are we going?" Sirius asked tearing Remus away from his memory.

"Albus calls it the Chamber of Need." McGonagall said.

"How'd he find it?" Remus asked, looking a bit guilty.

"You know of it?" McGonagall stopped and turned to look at the three who all appeared rather shifty.

"We uh…" Lily stammered. "We may have stumbled on it in our third year. Some of us used it more than the others though.' Lily said pointedly looking to Remus and Sirius.

"That's only because some of us were too squeamish to learn to become anamagi." Sirius said, looking back at Lily.

"I didn't want to be an ostrich, okay?" Lily snapped, though a smile was playing at her lips.

"Your revelation potion showed you an ostrich?" McGonagall asked interestedly.

Lily gave a sad little nod and McGonagall gave her former student a sympathetic smile.

"I think I might have chosen not to become and animagus if I were going to be an ostrich either." She said before turning around and urging them to follow.

"I wonder how much more you lot got up to back then. Though I am also terrified to find out more. The six of you together could accomplish the impossible, and it appears you often did."

Lily, Remus and Lily's smiles fell away. The mention of their school friends churned up so many memories, both pleasant and painful. Remus patted Lily's hand which still held his arm, while Sirius followed behind, his hands shoved deep into his pockets.

The rest of the walk was spent in silence, which McGonagall blamed herself for. She knew better than most how these three felt about their former friends. James was dead, and McGonagall knew that Lily, Remus and Sirius blamed Severus and peter for the parts they played. While Severus' betrayal had been over a number of years, Peter's had been sudden and more than a little shocking to the group. McGonagall hoped the coward never dared appear before the three following her now. She feared that it would be at the very least… messy.

Moments later they entered a familiar yet vastly different Chamber of Need. A hundred candles were placed on the floor at junction points where runes connected. Off to the side stood Dumbledore, dropping flakes of something into a small cauldron which was sitting over a flame.

"Ah, good." Dumbledore said as he stood up and smiled. "Just in time. I've just finished adding all but the most important ingredient into the potion. It now has to boil for a few hours which will give me time to explain what will be taking place, and your roles in tonight's, shall we say adventure?"

"Kidnapping seems to fit better." Remus muttered.

"I am aware of the morality of it Remus, Thank you." Dumbledore said pointedly, looking over his spectacles at the younger man. "As I have stated, if they should choose, I will send whomever we visited by straight back to their world. I have quadruple check everything to make sure that there is no mistakes."

"What is it you're hoping for tonight Professor?" Sirius asked as he studied the room.

"I have spent the better part of three years trying to discern just how Lord Voldemort managed to escape death. How was it that a child of barely a year could defeat such a powerful wizard, and how that wizard could manage to keep a grip on this plane of existence much less come back to full power. I am certain that on that night nearly sixteen years ago, lily's child destroyed Voldemort's body and that his spirit… his soul… managed to remain here instead of crossing over. Yet, he was not a ghost as we know them. He was something else entirely. My deepest hope is that we can find a world that resembles our closely enough that the person we pull through can, at the very least tell us if and how their Voldemort lived, if he did at all." Dumbledore said.

"You're assuming there is a world that is so closely tied to ours that they have a Voldemort and their Harry defeated him as a child and he still managed to come back?" Sirius looked disbelieving. "That's really pushing the boundaries of feasibility."

"Didn't you say roughly the same thing when you and Remus showed up at my house two weeks ago?" Lily pointed out. Sirius merely shrugged.

"How many times are you going to attempt this?" Remus asked, preventing any retort from Sirius.

"Once." Lily and Dumbledore said at the same time. Dumbledore gave Lily a soft smile which she ignored.

"We will only attempt this one time, and one time only. I have taken steps to try to ensure we get the best possible outcome, starting with this." Dumbledore pointed to the enormous mirror in the center of the room. "Sirius if you would assist me in a demonstration?"

Dumbledore motioned for Sirius to step in front of the mirror facing it.

"Now what?" Sirius asked skeptically.

"Just tell us what you see in the reflection." Dumbledore said.

"I see me. Tall, still handsome."

Oh jeez, here we go." Remus rolled his eyes.

"Hey, he told me to…" but then Sirius broke off and his mouth opened in surprise. "This… what is this?"

There in the mirror, Sirius saw himself sitting on a familiar porch with a beautiful redhead leaning against him, smiling in contentment. He glanced over at the very same redhead who stood no more than two feet away, looking curiously back at him. Sirius turned back to the mirror in time to see that Lily look up and kiss him softly. Sirius felt his heart clench in his chest. He'd dreamt of kissing Lily, of holding her as they watched the sun set. It was as if the mirror had found his most personal and private thoughts and was showing them to the world. As he looked around at the others, it appeared as if they couldn't see what he was seeing.

"How do you … turn it off." Sirius said in growing agitation and embarrassment. "Make it stop!"

Dumbledore motioned for Sirius to step away, which he did as if he'd been burnt. He was panting, and felt sweat cold on his face.

"What did you see?" Lily asked with concern, eyeing Dumbledore as if the man had just poisoned her friend.

"What was that?" Sirius asked, avoiding Lily's question.

"It is called the Mirror of Erised. And enchanted mirror that shows those who look their greatest wish. If a person who was perfectly happy would gaze into the mirror's reflection, they would see themselves exactly as they were. To the rest of us, it shows us our deepest and greatest desire."

"So what did you see?" Lily asked again now curious as to what her friend could have seen that would fill him with so much anguish. Sirius shook his head and avoided her eyes as he finally found his voice.

"I… I saw James. He was alive and had his arm around me and we were laughing…" Sirius said guiltily. Remus caught his eye, and Sirius knew that his friend had seen through his lie. Thankfully Lily had not.

"This is the portal in which we will be pulling our visitor through." Dumbledore said, pulling attention away fro Sirius who was still breathing quite heavily. When the potion is ready, Lily will place seven drops of her blood into it, after which I will cover the mirror's surface with the finished potion. Then Lily will stand before it, concentrating hard on her love for her child while the rest of us stand behind her each concentrating hard on one thing."

"Which will be?" Sirius asked, feeling more in control again.

"That will be different for each of us, but essentially it will be the child of James and Lily. For myself, I will be seeking the child of the prophecy. The one foretold to vanquish Voldemort." Dumbledore confided. "It is essential that whatever you think of, it must be attached to the child of James and Lily."

Everyone nodded their understanding.

"Now, we need to discuss a few things before the ritual is performed." Dumbledore said, looking suddenly worried. "First, our guest will remain at Hogwarts for only a few days. Unfortunately my teachers will be returning to prepare for the coming year, and I feel it best if he were not seen. I do not wish for even a hint of this to reach Voldemort's ears."

"You mean if he or she decides to stay." Lily pointed out. "Though I can't imagine why they would help us, especially as we just tore them away…"

"I think we all understand that." Dumbledore cut her off. "If our guest does desire to help, they will need a place to stay. I was hoping perhaps Sirius and Remus that you would be agreeable to offering sanctuary…"

"No." Lily said suddenly. "If this person does decide they will stay then they can stay with me."

"Are you certain Lily?" Professor McGonagall looking surprised and concerned.

"Lily, it won't be him." Remus reminded.

"I know." Lily snapped angrily. "But I told you the other night… It might be the only chance I ever get to know some version of my son. He can stay with me." She said adamantly. Dumbledore gave a single nod and a sad smile.

"And what if they don't want to stay Albus?" Sirius asked.

"Then they will stay a single night here at Hogwarts, and tomorrow, when the moon is at it's peak, I will reverse the ritual and send them home with my sincerest apologies, and perhaps a little knowledge of another dimension of reality." Dumbledore stated.

"Won't you need us?" Remus asked.

"I don't think so." Dumbledore shook his head. "The mirror and the person's desire to return to their world will be enough. The headmaster glanced at his watch and then moved to the boiling cauldron, giving it a stir and double checking the book set beside it.

"It is nearly time. Lily, there is a set of runes set in front of the mirror in red chalk. Would you please stand on them." Dumbledore ordered.

Lily found the runes easily. There was a circle with at least two dozen runes in red drawn around it. She stepped into the circle, looking anxiously back at her two friends, who tried to look encouragingly back. Dumbledore floated the cauldron over and set it at her feet before presenting a silver knife.

"Seven drops exactly, if you please." He instructed before turning to Remus and Sirius and showing them where they should stand. He then asked Professor McGonagall to wait outside.

Lily sliced her hand, and closed her fist to pool some blood before holding her wounded hand over the cauldron and counting each drop she allowed to fall into the cauldron, hearing it hiss with each drop.

Dumbledore took the knife, and tapped his wand to Lily's palm, healing the cut instantly. He gave her one last encouraging smile before he guided the cauldron to the mirror with his wand. Lily could only stare in heart pounding silence as the potion which had turned clear with the final drop of her blood was poured onto the mirror. It looked like a slow moving waterfall as the potion slid down the reflective glass, merging with it. Lily stared at the reflection both excited and afraid of what it would show her, but all she saw was herself.

"That's so strange.' She thought to herself. "I'm not happy at all. I thought it was supposed to show me my heart's desire. Maybe it has something to do with the potion…"

Then she saw something. The reflection shimmered like a clear pond that had a pebble tossed into it. Her reflection slowly began to disappear and all she could see was blackness.

"Concentrate Lily.' Dumbledore said softly as he passed her to take his spot behind her.

Lily's hands went to her chest as her heart hammered harder and harder. She felt tears begin to sting here eyes as the reflection, or rather to window into whatever world they had managed to connect to became clearer, and Lily saw someone look up in fearful curiosity.

* * *

Harry Potter had never in all of his nearly seventeen years… Correction… Today was his birthday so that made it all of his seventeen years had ever felt as exhausted as he felt at that very moment. He stumbled shakily into the bathroom and with a wave of his wand lit the gas lamps before going to the sink to fill it with water. He splashed his face the held tightly to the sides of the sink and sighed.

It was over.

The war was over and his destiny had been fulfilled.

He had single handedly won the war against the Dark Lord Voldemort. Hours before his seventeenth birthday he had ended the reign of darkness and was likely being celebrated once again as the savior of the Wizarding World.

But at that moment, Harry himself felt absolutely no inclination to celebrate anything. In fact, all he wanted to do was crawl back into the bed he'd been given at Hogwarts and either sleep or cry until death came for him. Yes, he had won the war, but he had lost everything. Every person who had ever mattered to him was dead and only Harry himself remained, and it was tearing him apart. As he looked up into the mirror all he wanted to do was what Voldemort had been unable to do. Harry wanted to die.

He shook his head knowing that she would be so angry at him.

That thought made the tears come again, and he clutched the sink to prevent himself from just crumbling into a pile on the floor.

For several long moments Harry just stood as the anguish washed over him. He knew he would likely have loads of these moments in the coming days. However, he was not going to bottle it all up. His friend and mentor had once told him that pain was a part of who we were and that we shouldn't try and push it away, but allow it to run it's course and that we would be stronger for it.

But how much pain could any one person handle?

Harry had lost his parents before he could even remember them. He'd lost his uncle when he was ten. He'd lost his godfather. He'd lost a close friend. Then his mentor. And in the last few weeks he'd lost friend after friend and it had all culminated in seeing the woman he'd thought he would spend his life with murdered right in front of him.

He still couldn't stop seeing her face, as she stood defiantly as Lord Voldemort held her facing him. She had had tears sliding down her face, but she hadn't been afraid. She'd been angry. Angry that her future was about to be taken from her. And in the moment before her life had been taken, she'd told him that she would always be his. Then she had been slaughtered, and Harry had surged with a hatred that he'd never known. A hatred that burned in him so deep he had thought for sure it would consume him. The rage had lifted him off the ground where he'd been kept by Death Eaters, forced to watch the woman he'd had every intention of marrying be killed.

Voldemort had been unprepared for Harry's reaction, and even more so for the energy that entrapped him and slowly and quite painfully disintegrated him. His screams would echo into eternity, but Harry had ignored them. As Voldemort was being ripped apart, Harry had lifted the body of his lover and held her close as he cried rage filled tears. With every tear drop that fell, Voldemort's suffering increased until the monster was simply dust.

Harry hadn't heard the cheers, but he remembered the solemn reverence people had as he passed them as he made his way to the castle, carrying the body of the girl who'd been his first friend and had grown into a beautiful young woman. A young woman that he had every intention of telling that he'd fallen in love with. His Ginny.

Harry couldn't remember much after that. He knew he'd taken Ginny to the hospital wing, and he remembered Madam Pomfrey's face when she saw Ginny's body. He remembered a solemn looking Colin Creevey helping him up the stairs and then he'd woken up a few minutes ago. He was sure he had suffered magical exhaustion given how drained he felt currently. Undoubtedly whatever he'd done to Voldemort had eaten up his magical core until there was nothing left. Harry was sure Madam Pomfrey would insist on seeing him and prescribing him bed rest under her watchful eye, but Harry wasn't going to be stuck in the infirmary. No, he was going to go home and open that bottle of fifty year old firewhiskey Sirius had left for him and get as drunk as he could. He was going to wallow in his pain until it was either gone, or he was dead.

"You're going to live and you're going to find happiness Mister!" a voice in Harry's head that sounded exactly like Ginny screamed at him.

"Fuck that." Harry said out loud. He reached into the basin and filled his hands with water which he splashed on his face. He knew he was filthy, and likely had dried blood caked on his face. That was confirmed when he saw after a few more handfuls of water, the water was turning pink.

Taking a deep breath, and somewhat dreading what he was about to see, Harry looked into the mirror. He couldn't believe that he was looking at a seventeen year old young man. The things he'd seen and done had aged him, though his face was still young, his eyes looked as ancient as Dumbledore's had been.

While contemplating that, Harry saw the mirror shimmer, as if it were water. Curiously, he reached up and touched it. Finding that it was still just a mirror, Harry shook his head.

"Must be the exhaustion." He reasoned.

And then the mirror shimmered again, only this time Harry could no longer see himself in the reflection. Instead was a somewhat familiar face staring back. A woman to be precise. A woman he'd only ever seen in pictures.

Harry's heart shot into his throat, and he backed away, fearing that he'd just cracked. He had lost his mind. Everything he'd seen and all of the loss had finally pushed him over the edge. He'd defeated Voldemort only to have gone completely crazy.

But then another thought occurred to him. He lived in a world of magic. Perhaps he'd been cursed by someone and he was only now feeling the effects. Or perhaps this was just a dream and he was still asleep, and having some sort of nightmare.

Harry stepped forward and leaned closer to the mirror, trying to see the woman's face. It was almost exactly like the one he'd seen smiling up at him from his photo album, though definitely older, and sadder. She looked as if she was crying, her hand going to her mouth as she looked back at him.

"Mum?" he asked reaching up to touch the mirror. "Mum, is it really you?"

As his fingers touched the mirror, Harry felt something grip his finger tips. It was as if he'd touched a thick syrup like substance. It felt cold on his skin but that didn't bother him as much as the fact that it was sucking him into the mirror. In a second his wrist had been engulfed.

Panic began to take hold of him. If this was a dream it was incredibly vivid. Harry picked up his wand that lay on the edge of the sink and aimed it at the mirror as his arm was pulled deeper into the reflection. He leveled the wand at the mirror, a curse on his lips, but the expression on the woman's face halted him. She looked as if she was witnessing something that was filling her with happiness. The woman's resemblance to his mother was astounding and it made him freeze up.

His panic at being trapped was mixed with an overwhelming desire to let whatever this was to continue and hopefully end his life. Maybe this was what it was like when a person crossed over. Maybe he had died after all and was only now heading into that next great adventure, and if that was true, then he'd be with the people he loved. His mother and Father. His uncle. His friends, and most of all… Ginny.

Harry felt a strange calm envelope him then. That had to be it. He had died, and now he was going to be with the people who matter most at last. His whole body relaxed, and Harry slipped his other hand into the mirror and then his head next. It was very cold, like diving into an icy lake in the dead of winter, something he was all to familiar with.

And then he was suddenly warm again, and falling. And there were voices around him, but he couldn't see because he was covered in a thick, gooey something. He wiped at his face, trying to get the stuff off.

"Stay back." Someone was saying. "Just wait…"

"But he needs help." someone else said. A woman's voice.

"Stay back Lily!" the first voice commanded.

Harry coughed hard and then gagged. The stuff was in him. He coughed and a large wad of the stuff came up and splattered on the stone floor. It tasted horrible and had the consistency of watery snot.

"Step aside." Someone else spoke in a calm, yet commanding tone. Harry felt the slime being pulled up like as if someone had placed some sort of vacuum over him. It took only a minute but then it was all gone and Harry could breathe once more, as well as see clearly.

There were four of them in the room, all of them familiar but different. But she wasn't there. The panic came back in a rush and Harry stumbled back, feeling glass under him, cutting his hands. He clutched his wand, yanking it out of his wrist holster and holding it up warningly.

"Can you tell us your name?" the oldest of the four spoke in a very calm tone that made Harry do a double take. It just couldn't be him. But hadn't he just convinced himself that he had died and this, wherever or whatever this was, was the next stage? But if that were so, why wasn't she there? And where were the others? Where was his father? Where was his uncle? What about Draco?

"Who are you?" Harry demanded. "STAY BACK!"

"It is alright." the old man said holding up his hands, one of which held a wand. "We mean you no harm."

"He's got a wand, that's a good sign." the man with the long black hair said.

Harry focused on that man for a moment, studying him, remembering and comparing. The face was not drawn or pale, but full of life, though the dark eyes were haunted, but not the same way they had been as Harry had known them.

"S-Sirius?" Harry asked.

Sirius Black looked up, shocked that the boy knew him, though he realized that given how Dumbledore had explained it, Sirius should have expected the boy to recognize him.

"Uh, only if we were friends…" Sirius said hesitantly.

"Professor Dumbledore?" Harry asked, looking to the old man who was now smiling clearly pleased. The hair and beard were shorter, and the glasses were rounder, but the blue eyes still twinkled. The man gave a single nod and smiled triumphantly.

Harry turned to the other man. There were no scars and he looked a lot younger. His clothes looked in better shape as well, and there was no gray in his hair. And yet, Harry knew that hopeful smile. He'd seen it so often, especially when the man had told him that his wife was pregnant.

"Remus?" Harry asked. The man looked to the others in the room, hoping for some sort of advice on what to do or say here.

Finally Harry turned his full attention to the redheaded woman who still had bother her hands clasped over her mouth with tears streaming down her face. Harry got to his feet with Professor Dumbledore's assistance, and took two tentative steps towards this woman who was just watching him, looking exactly how Harry was feeling. So confused and yet so excited all at once.

He tried to say the word, but his throat had tightened. He reached up slowly with his free hand now, holding out his hand as tears spilled from his eyes. Tears were also falling from her eyes. The same eyes he'd seen in pictures, and every time he'd looked in the mirror.

"M-m-mum?" He asked in a dry hoarse whisper.

And then Harry's heart felt as if it was smashed into a million pieces when the woman shook here head, and backed away from him. She began sobbing, and the man that Harry had thought to be Sirius rushed to her side, enveloping her in a comforting embrace. Harry stepped back now, completely lost. He turned away from the woman and found a large shattered mirror behind him. Broken shards littered the floor, some with his blood on them. Harry lifted his hand, examining the few cuts, watching the blood spill out.

He turned to the old man who was watching him critically.

"Am I dead?"

* * *

In a seaside village on the coast of France, seventeen year old Hermione Granger walked silently on the boardwalk listening to the sound of people having a good time in the cafes she passed. The day had been warm, but tonight had gotten quite chilly, and she walked with her arms wrapped around herself.

Her mother and father were out having what Hermione guessed was a lovely romantic dinner, leaving her to entertain herself. She had started the evening reading a book in the hotel room, but, and it surprised her as well, she didn't feel like reading. So she had decided that a bit of night air was the thing.

She loved coming here with her parents. It was always so beautiful. But this year felt different to her. Like she was not where she was supposed to be. The feeling had started the day before they left, and had grown and persisted ever since. Tonight however, it was the worst. There was something inside of her telling her that she was needed to be somewhere else, but she had no idea where that was. She was extremely restless now, and agitated.

She stopped on a bridge that overlooked the marina and stared down at all the sailboats, and thought for a moment how nice it would be to get on one with a handsome young man and just sail off into the sunset. Then her practical side kicked in and began listing all the reasons that would be ridiculous. Frowning, Hermione turned and continued on her stroll, lamenting that she was so practical and not really given to flights of fancy. It just wasn't in her nature. She could never do anything without some kind of plan.

"That isn't true." She thought. She had on several occasions thrown caution to the wind. Like accepting Anthony Goldstein's invitation to the Yule ball in her fourth year when she had planned on going home for Christmas. Or when she had actually feigned illness to get out of an exam in Runes that she didn't feel prepared for. Yes, she had spent the entire day studying for the exam, but not going to classes had been extremely out of character. And what about the time she'd drank whiskey with her cousin? That was truly a rebellious moment in the life of Hermione granger.

"Who are you trying to kid?" she asked herself. "You're just a Know-It-All Plain Jane, and you're always going to be. You'll study hard, go to University when you finish at Hogwarts, wind up married to a banker or solicitor with three kids and a big fat butt."

With a sigh, Hermione kicked off her sandals and scrunched her toes in the sand. She stared out at the gentle waves as the feeling in her chest seem to grow more intense. She couldn't figure out why she was feeling so lost at the moment. It was incredibely strange for her.

And then very suddenly, as the moon appears from behind some clouds, Hermione felt a warmth burst in her chest and her heart began to beat very fast. The feeling that she was not where she was supposed to be intensified immensely, and Hermione was suddenly overcome with heartbreak. She fell to her knees and began to cry as if she had just lost someone very dear to her, and she could not even begin to explain why she felt this way.

It took a little while but Hermione managed to compose herself. Deciding it would be too difficult to explain to her parents, she decided that she needed to get back to the hotel, and pretend to be asleep before they returned. Otherwise, they might think she was cracking up, and she already had enough going on in her life without worrying her mother and father more than they did already.

Maybe tomorrow she could figure out what had happened. Maybe tomorrow she could go into the magical shopping district and find a book on emotional distress in witches.


	4. Chapter 4

"You swore that you'd be able to send him back!" Remus snarled threateningly. "You told us that it wouldn't be a problem!"

Dumbledore held up his hands, trying to calm his former student down. The two were standing in the Headmaster's office at Hogwarts roughly an hour after the young man now identified as Harry James Potter had come through the mirror from his world, completing the ritual. Things had gotten rather confusing and emotional after that.

Currently, Sirius and Lily were off somewhere, hopefully getting Lily calmed down, while the young man was being taken by Professor McGonagall to a private room where he could rest.

"It is possible to send the young man back to his world." Dumbledore claimed. "I never lied about that! However, it will prove more difficult without the Mirror of Erised. It was key to guaranteeing that he get back to the correct world. During my research I saw nothing to intimate that the mirror would shatter. I can only guess the amount of power used in the ritual proved too much for our particular conduit. I can use any mirror to send him back, but if I get it wrong, there would be no way to correct it, and the young man would be trapped in a world that may not be his own."

"So what then?" Remus asked, still fuming. "What happens when he wants to go home Albus?"

"Tomorrow, I will send a letter to the estate of the mirror's creator. I am sure they would be willing to lend me the notes regarding its origination and I may be able to create one of my own. I swore Remus. I swore I would send him back should he wish it and I intend to uphold my promise, no matter what it takes."

Dumbledore looked quite serious as he spoke, and Remus relaxed, turning and taking a seat with a heavy sigh. There was a long silence as Dumbledore poured two glasses of brandy and then handed one to the wolf animagus. Remus took it with a grateful sigh and took a sip.

"That was… surreal." Remus muttered. "I swear to you I thought we had somehow pulled James here. He looks exactly like James, except for the eyes and that scar."

"I felt the same." Dumbledore admitted. "I thought that the mirror had keyed in on Lily's love for her husband, and that it was a version of James Potter who we'd pulled into our world. I would hazard a guess that we did manage to pull him from a world close to our own. As he did not attack any of us, I am hopeful that he thought fondly of our counterparts."

"I suppose that's one good thing." Remus rolled his eyes.

"You think I was wrong in asking this of Lily?" Dumbledore asked. Remus down the rest of his brandy before looking at the old man who he had once looked up to.

"I think you've been making mistake after mistake in dealing with Voldemort and his followers since the war began. I think in your pursuit to find a non-violent solution, you've sacrificed far too many lives including those of James and his son. I think that if you'd stepped up during the and challenged Voldemort like you should have, James would still be alive, Harry would have grown up happy and healthy, that poor young man wouldn't be sitting in some room wondering how the hell he got here and you and I wouldn't be having this discussion!" Remus finished with a shout.

"I have given my reasons for seeking an alternate…" Dumbledore began but Remus waved him off.

"I know all that!" Remus snapped. "But some people just can't be reasoned with, or made to see the error of their ways. Some people just want to watch the world burn. We've all got blood on our hands Albus, you more than anyone. And bringing someone from some other world to fight a war you could have put an end to years ago is just another in a long line of mistakes that's going to get more people killed, including that kid."

"No more lives will be lost if I can help it." Dumbledore said, slamming his fist on his desk.

"It's one thing to say that Albus." Remus said sadly as he got to his feet, setting his empty glass on the Headmaster's desk. "It's another to actually follow through with it."

With that, Remus turned and left the Headmaster to his thoughts.

* * *

Harry awoke as the sun shone into his window. He sat up and took in his surroundings, realizing at once that he hadn't dreamed any of it. He was actually in another world. The evidence was far to glaring to deny, staring with the fact that the room he was in was clean. The Hogwarts he had been taken from had been heavily damaged, with rubble and dust covering everything, and the smell of smoke permeating the air. There was none of that here. It was immaculate, and it slightly unnerved Harry.

Harry swung his legs out of bed, and stretched. His body still ached and he still felt exhausted. He knew he would probably still be feeling the effects of the final battle for a few weeks. But that wasn't the most pressing concern on his mind at the moment. For some reason these people who looked like people he had known, and in some cases watched die, had pulled him out of his world and brought him here. Harry thought he knew why, but he wanted to hear them say it.

With a groan, he pulled on his boots and tied them before sliding his wand into a pocket. He thought briefly about getting a replacement wrist holster as he'd lost his own during that fight with the goblins while trying to retrieve the last horcrux. He gave a soft grumble as he tried to imagine just what the goblins were going to do to him in retribution for breaking into the bank, as well as all the destruction he had caused.

With nothing else to do, and because he was starving, Harry decided to head to the Great Hall. As he swung open the door, it occurred to him that this Hogwarts might not be exactly the same as the one he knew. The Great Hall might not be in the same location. On the other hand, he really didn't want to stay in this room any longer. Somehow it felt like a prison cell to him.

Harry had barely taken three steps when a house elf popped in front of him, bowing low and giving a wide smile.

"Good morning, honored guest." The elf said in a high voice that was heavily accented. Harry thought it might be Germanic, but wasn't sure. "I is being called Gustav. I is being asked by professor Dumbledore to be escorting you to the Great Hall for breakfast and a conversation." The elf concluded.

"Alright then.' Harry said, giving a nod of his head to the elf. "Lead the way my friend."

The elf stopped short and eyed Harry for a moment, looking confused. he then shook his head and motioned that Harry should follow. As they walked, Harry took in the castle. It was all hauntingly familiar, and yet foreign at the same time. He saw paintings that he thought he recognized, but they were in different locations. Colors seemed different or the frames were completely different.

On the other hand, the castle appeared to be laid out exactly the same as the Hogwarts he knew. Harry thought that he'd like to explore the castle a bit more, and wondered if there was a Marauder's map in this world that would help guide him in his exploration.

The Great Hall was as vast and welcoming as the one Harry knew, though he noted one glaring difference. Behind the head table was a giant stained glass window the depicted the crest of the school. It was quite stunning. Harry thought that if and when he managed to get back to his world, he'd suggest they put one in as the rebuilt Hogwarts.

At the moment, the Great hall was empty of furniture, save for a round table with fourteen chairs around it. The House table and the head table were missing, and Harry thought perhaps they were being cleaned or something. There was someone sitting that the round table, watching him with great interest as he approached. It was with the oddest sense of déjà vu that Harry took a seat.

The man smiled brightly as Harry took a seat. The table was weighed down by platters of breakfast foods, and Harry's stomach gave a loud grumble as he surveyed it all.

"I am quite certain that you're hungry. Please tuck in." Dumbledore smiled, motioning to the food. Harry didn't have to be told twice as he quickly loaded the plate in front of him and then began to devour it all. it had been a long time since he'd had so much to eat. He barely noticed Dumbledore watching him as he made his way through two helpings of eggs and sausages.

"I must admit, I thought you would be more hostile towards us." Dumbledore said breaking the peace. Harry didn't look up, but shrugged.

"The day's still early." He said and then looked up at the headmaster curiously. "How did you do it? How did you take me from my world?"

"That is a very complicated story." Dumbledore claimed. "And not nearly as important as why."

"Am I a prisoner?" Harry asked.

"No, no, not at all. You are my guest." Dumbledore replied with a gentle smile.

"So I can leave?" Harry asked, now looking up. Dumbledore's smile faltered.

"I promise that I will send you home just as soon as I am able, but I beg your patience. It seems that we broke the conduit we used to bring you here, and I must now endeavor to find a suitable replacement to ensure you get back to your home world." Dumbledore explained, noting how Harry's face fell at the mention of his home. Dumbledore thought it best not to ask about that just yet.

"So why then?" Harry asked, fixing the old man with a hard stare. "Why did you bring me here? What do you want from me?"

"It is because we need your help." Dumbledore said gently, placing his hands on the table and folding them together.

"My help? You managed to open a portal into another world, and you need MY help?" Harry looked incredulous. Dumbledore gave a humored smile and shook his head.

"Strange as it is to believe, it is true I assure you. You see, our world is in the midst of a great struggle and…"

"Hold on, let me see if I can guess." Harry said setting his knife and fork down and pushing his plate away. "You need me to fight a dark wizard because you can't beat him and you don't know why he is so strong of something like that."

"No." Dumbledore shook his head. "That isn't…"

"Forget it." Harry said cutting him off. "I just finished a war. Literally hours before you opened that door or window or whatever you call it and pulled me here. I won that war and it cost me everything and everyone."

"I am not asking you to fight." Dumbledore said quickly, and Harry gave him another look of confusion. "

"Then why am I here?" Harry wondered, sitting back in his seat.

"We opened that portal in the hopes of finding someone from a world close enough to ours that they might be able to find away to defeat our enemy. You see, in our world, there was a prophecy that stated someone would be born who could defeat our dark wizard. But Lord Voldemort killed that child. He killed our version of you when he was a year old, along with another boy born a day earlier."

"Neville Longbottom?" Harry looked shocked. Dumbledore's eyes went wide with surprise, but he nodded just the same. Harry felt his stomach sink a bit. Neville had been one of his best friends before he'd died at the hands of Rudolphus LeStrange. Now he learned that Neville had barely existed in this world.

"I would like to know about your war and specifically your dark wizard. It is my hope that perhaps something in your world could at least give us a clue in how to defeat the dark lord in this world. You said that you had won the war in your world… would you please tell me about it?"

"I have some questions first." Harry said. Dumbledore looked at him for a second or two and then motioned that Harry should proceed.

"You're Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, correct?" Harry asked.

"Wulfric Percival. There is no Brian in my name. but essentially yes. But let me make it clear I am not the Albus Dumbledore that you know."

"Knew." Harry corrected. Dumbledore's eyes went large for a split second at the revelation, but schooled his features quickly.

"Ah." Dumbledore said with a nod, "The Albus Dumbledore of your world is dead then?"

"He died freeing me." Harry stated, but didn't elaborate. "That woman from last night, that was Lily Potter?"

"Yes."

"My mother." Harry said, his eyes losing focus.

"Yes and no. She had a child whom she had named Harry James Potter, who died sixteen years ago." Dumbledore explained.

"So everyone I knew from my world is potentially here in this one, but they aren't the people I know." Harry said scratching his head. "Talk about a mind fuck."

"I suppose that is one way to put it." Dumbledore said with a soft frown.

"Ginny Weasley?" Harry looked up suddenly, and Dumbledore could not mistake the hope in the lad's eyes.

"What about her?" Dumbledore asked. Harry couldn't stifle the fire burning in his chest.

"Is she alive? I mean, is she… does she…" Harry stammered, not even sure what he wanted to ask. He kept telling himself that it wasn't going to be his Ginny. It wouldn't be the girl he had first met on the train six years ago. She wouldn't be the girl he'd spent so much time with over the years, or the girl who'd given him his first kiss after they'd drank three bottles of firewhiskey after winning the house cup.

"I swear to you Mister Potter, as soon as I can manage it I will send you home to your friends and family, and to your Ginny." Dumbledore swore and Harry's heart sank.

"She's dead." Harry said glumly. "All of you are. This castle is barely standing in my world. Voldemort nearly wiped us all out. He might have succeeded with his mission too, except he made a fatal mistake. When he took her from me I made sure that his journey to hell had a most excruciating beginning. I tore him apart."

"So he was known as Lord Voldemort in your world as well." Dumbledore looked interested.

"Tom Marvolo Riddle became Lord Voldemort after learning that he was a half-blood sometime in his fifth year."

"Riddle, you say?" Dumbledore perked up suddenly sitting quite straight at this new information.

"Well if people in my world are similar to this one then Tom Marvolo Riddle is Lord Voldemort." Harry shrugged, then looked at Dumbledore with a bit of confusion. "You didn't know that?"

"I don't believe anyone knows his true identity." Dumbledore looked truly stunned.

"So wait a minute, if you didn't know about his true identity… do you know about the horcruxes?" Harry asked.

"The what?" Dumbledore gawked at Harry.

"Horcruxes." Harry said. "Soul anchors. Pieces of his soul that he hid in important objects in special locations that were important to him and surrounded with protective enchantments. They need to be destroyed before he can be killed. It's incredibly dark magic."

"My gods." Dumbledore said, looking into the distance thoughtfully. "That's how he did it. That's how he escaped death. He tied himself to this world. You said horcruxes, plural. How many did he make in your world?"

"There was a total of seven. Six he made intentionally, and the last one was an accident, and the reason you died. Or rather…"

"I understand." Dumbledore nodded. "But would you explain more?"

"You said earlier that there was a prophecy about a child that would destroy him. In my world there was a prophecy that said I would be the one to kill him, and he came to try and kill me when I was a baby. He killed my mother and father, but my mother sacrificed herself for me, and invoked some kind of protection that caused his killing curse to rebound and kill him. But his soul was so fragile from all the horcruxes he'd made, that part of his soul latched onto me in this." Harry tapped the lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead.

"The version of Dumbledore in my world spent twelve years trying to figure out a way to remove it, which he did, but it proved too much for him. He was already dying from one of the horcruxes he'd destroyed. A poison was eating away at him for almost a year at that point. He wasn't as strong as he should have been and the ritual was too much. He got the thing out of me, and then died after he told me I had to finish the war.

Harry's voice had started cracking as he recalled that night as if it had only happened a few hours ago.

"He was my mentor, and my friend, and he gave his life so that I could live a full life with the girl I loved. But that didn't happen either."

"Harry, I am deeply sorry for your losses." Dumbledore stated. "But I am grateful that you shared this with me. More than I can begin to express. I would like it if we could speak again after I've had some time to do a bit of research, if you would be acceptable."

"Sure.' Harry shrugged. "It doesn't look as if I have anything else to do."

Dumbledore frowned and took a deep breath.

"As I said, you are not a prisoner here. You may go anywhere you wish, so long as you keep me informed of your comings and goings, only so that if I need you, I can find you easily. Also, I would like it if you were with an escort. This is for your safety. I have no doubt that you can take care of yourself as they say, but it would put my mind at ease."

Harry gave a nod, and Dumbledore rose, giving Harry a grateful nod. The headmaster told his guest to just call for Gustav, and the elf would show him back to his room, should he like to rest, or he could tour the castle before he turned and swept from the room at a hurried pace.

Harry found his way back to his room on his own. He gave the room a once over, and decided to take a long shower as he was still covered in filth from battle. He wished he had fresh clothes, but the shower did wonders in making him feel more human. After getting clean, Harry wound up taking a long nap. Madam Pomfrey had always said that food and rest did wonders in healing someone.

* * *

Harry was awoken by someone knocking on his door. Thinking it was likely Dumbledore with more questions, Harry got up and went to let the Headmaster in. Harry actually flinched slightly when he opened the door and found someone else standing in the doorway, looking a bit apprehensive.

"Do you have any idea how strange it is to see you standing there?" Harry asked. Sirius Black cocked his head questioningly and Harry shook his head. "Forget it."

"I was hoping the two of us could chat." Sirius said rather stoically.

Harry shrugged and opened his door wider, allowing the man who resembled his godfather in.

Sirius looked a bit anxious, and avoided looking at Harry for a moment. Harry sat on the edge of his bed, running his hands through his hair, trying to rid himself of sleepiness. Sirius finally pulled the chair from the desk and turned it as he sat down facing Harry.

"It is remarkable how much you look like him." Sirius said.

"I'm going to guess you're referring to my father." Harry said. Sirius gave a single nod and Harry chuckled softly. "Not surprisingly, I was constantly told by people who knew my father in my world how much I looked like him. Got a bit annoying after a bit. Dumbledore did mention that this world's version of me was killed by Voldemort, which is why I'm here, I guess."

"That was the worst night of my life." Sirius stated his eyes losing their focus as he remembered that horrible night. "I was the first one to arrive, and when I saw my best friend lying there…"

"Did you convince my parents to switch secret keepers?" Harry asked.

"No." Sirius shook his head, and then looked up with surprise. "How did you know…"

"I didn't." Harry replied. "But things keep appearing pretty close to what happened in my world, so I figured that something similar must have happened."

"No, I didn't convince them to switch secret keepers. When we were discussing James and Lily going into hiding, the Fidelius charm was the obvious choice. Peter volunteered, and after we all talked, it made the most sense. Everyone would have guessed me or Remus, but Peter… they'd have been a fool to think he'd be entrusted. Everyone thought he was weak. I never in a million years would have guessed he would betray us."

There was a stony silence as Sirius pushed down all of his violent thoughts. He swore that one day Peter Pettigrew would pay for what he had done, and Sirius had also sworn it would be him that collected that debt.

"I take it that it was Peter who betrayed your parents in your world as well?" Sirius asked when he felt he was under control again.

Harry gave a nod. "But it was you who convinced them, and the guilt you felt after Pettigrew betrayed them led you to hunting the prick down. He tricked you and blew up a muggle street, cut off his finger and transformed into a rat to get away. You spent twelve years in Azkaban until you escaped."

"I escaped Azkaban?" Sirius looked impressed.

"Transformed into a dog, and basically walked out." Harry said.

"Well I'm glad I didn't hunt the little prick down here then. They have ways to prevent animagus transformations." Sirius said thoughtfully. "Did I ever manage to repay the little bastard?"

"No." Harry shook his head. "You died while trying to rescue me from a trap I should have been smarter in spotting. Your cousin Bellatrix Lestrange hit you with a spell that sent you through the veil of death."

"Bellatrix married one of the LeStranges?!" Sirius looked shocked. "I can't believe it. The Bellatrix I know would never allow any man to touch her unless it was Voldemort himself. She's so devoted to him that it's gone beyond obsession. I wouldn't even know how to describe it…"

"She isn't married here?" Harry asked inquisitively

"No, here she is still Bellatrix Black, the Blade of Voldemort." Sirius shook his head. He then looked at Harry again, and was taken aback. "You really do look like James. It's so uncanny."

"What was he like? I never knew him in my world, and we hardly got to talk about him when we were together. I'd really like to know about him, even if it isn't my father we're talking about… Gods that is gonna get infuriating." Harry said, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.

"I suppose it will." Sirius nodded with a smirk. He took several moments and the shrugged.

"I met James when I was six. Our mothers took us to some wizard function, I can't remember. Purebloods and their parties. Anyway, we were both the same age, and the youngest there. James had somehow managed to sneak a few toys in his coat, and the two of us played together the whole day. We saw each other off and on over the next few years, and started writing to each other when we were nine. By the time we boarded the train, we were the best of friends. He introduced me to Remus, who he knew because Remus' father worked for James father." Sirius took a breath, and got a bit more comfortable in his seat while Harry waited patiently for Sirius to continue his tale. it was already vastly different from what he knew of his actual father.

"We met Peter when we helped him get his trunk on the train and he kind of just followed us. Our group became complete when we found our cabin and met Lily and Severus. It was weird... James and Lily... they connected almost instantly, as if they'd known each other their whole lives." Sirius chuckled to himself. When Harry started laughing, Sirius looked up curiously. Harry waved his hands and shook his head.

"Sorry, it isn't you. It's just... in my world, My father was in love with my mother, but she hated him. Thought he was an arrogant little toe rag until their seventh year when they were Head Boy and Girl together." Harry snorted. Sirius guffawed at that and shook his head.

"James would have killed himself if he'd became Head boy." Sirius laughed. "Lily was a prefect, but she wasn't Head Girl. I can't imagine what would have happened if she had been. I think she might have lost that title within a day."

Harry leaned forward quite interested in this.

"I used to get jealous of her a lot through school because she and James were so tight. I sometimes thought she was replacing me. That wasn't the case of course, but I didn't figure that out until our fourth year. But other than my own insecurities, the six of us ruled Hogwarts almost from the word go." Sirius recounted fondly.

"Wait… the six of you? Snape was your friend?" Harry looked intrigued. Sirius gave a nod, though he was beginning to look interested in what Harry's world had been like for the Sirius there.

"A lot of people gave us flack. Five Gryffindors hanging out with a Slytherin. But Severus was one of us. We came up with an idea, and he found a way to make it happen. He was totally brilliant. It's because of him we became Animagi. For four and a half years nothing could come between us. But halfway through fifth year, everything changed." Sirius sighed heavily.

"What happened?" Harry asked.

James and Lily figured out what had been going on between them. but it wasn't only that. Severus was a sort of pariah in Slytherin because of who he was friends with, and he'd been under immense pressure to drop us as friends. usually he would tell us who was harassing him, and we would prank that idiot pretty spectacularly. But Severus still had to live in that house without us to watch out for him." Sirius sat up a bit straighter now and leaned forward, clasping his hands together as he stared into space.

What none of us knew at the time, but should have been obvious was that Snape was desperately in love with lily. They knew each other before school started and were friends, but Snape loved her. While I was jealous of Lily, Snape was seeding a hatred for James, all because he was jealous. On top of that, his fellow Slytherins were starting to believe the propaganda Voldemort was spewing. Without us there to keep him grounded, I think Severus just got buried under all of it. But when James and lily started dating officially, it broke him. He just hadn't seen what the rest of us had, which was that James and lily were meant for each other. he became guided by his jealousy and his rage, and over a time, he became unbearable to be around. And then one day, he crossed a line."

"What happened?" Harry asked, now on the edge of his seat.

"There was an argument between Lily and Severus right around OWL time, if I remember correctly, and he confessed his feelings at last. Lily told him that she had never felt anything more than friendship for him, and likely never would. She said she loved him, but not in the way he wanted her to. That's when he lost it and hexed her. We all stayed out of it for as long as we could because we knew she could take care of herself, but when it became obvious she was really hurt, James stepped in, and it was over pretty quickly after that. While they were both pretty powerful, James was much faster with his wand. Even with his knowledge of darker spells, Severus would likely never beat James in a duel. None of us ever talked to Severus after that, at least we thought. I would guess peter and Severus had quite the catch up when he took the mark." Sirius sighed.

Sirius looked up at Harry who was now nearly standing as he'd been so drawn into the tale. He looked very shocked at what he just had heard, and Sirius took a breath and sat back again.

"Sometime near the end of the war, Severus turned traitor for our side, though we didn't know why at the time. We found out a week after the funerals when Severus visited Lily and revealed that it had been him who revealed the prophecy to Voldemort, and then begged Dumbledore to hide her and her family." Sirius sighed, then shook his head as he smirked. "I think he still walks with a limp."

"Dumbledore said there was a prophecy here too." Harry remarked. Sirius gave a nod of confirmation.

"The night you were born. Snape was trying to gain favor, but when he learned that Voldemort was targeting the Potters, he went to Dumbledore begging him to protect her. If Dumbledore hadn't been there when Snape confessed to Lily, I've no doubt that there wouldn't have been enough of him left to bury. No one heard from the bastard for a long time until Voldemort resurfaced, and Dumbledore revealed to us that Severus was now spying for the Order of the Phoenix. That was the night Remus and I decided to go solo."

"So you two have been fighting against Voldemort on your own?" Harry looked impressed.

"We… uh, we've taken it upon ourselves to deprive Voldemort of some of his followers." Sirius shrugged.

"Meaning?" Harry pressed.

"We became assassins." Sirius said.

"Wicked!" Harry smiled. "Oh I wish someone had done that in my world. Would have made the final battle so much easier!"

"The Ministry isn't all that fond of our methods, and Dumbledore loves to lecture us about the sanctity of life any chance he gets, but it's the only way we know that will guarantee that his numbers go down. They have no problem killing us, so..."

"That's pretty smart. Dumbledore in my world hated it, but knew that people would have to die. He taught me to put down my enemies permanently or they would get revived by their brethren. He also made sure I understood that life was precious."

"Dumbledore told us that you won your world's war." Sirius remarked.

"I beat him just a few hours before you lot brought me here." Harry said stonily.

"He also said that you lost a lot of people." Sirius added. Harry nodded, turning to look out the window. there was a heavy silence as Harry tried to keep himself in control. "I'm sorry for that. It's not easy to lose someone, but I can't imagine losing everyone."

"Before you lot brought me here, I was thinking about killing myself." Harry admitted. "I had nothing left. Everyone I ever cared for died, including the girl I wanted to marry. She'd been my best friend for years, and I was in love with her, but I never told her. I didn't think she knew until just before Voldemort killed her. I told her to stay out of it, but she couldn't. I don't know if she thought I was going to lose, or just wanted to buy me more time or what she was thinking. But she leapt between us and tried to disarm him. He laughed at her and took her wand from her, snapping it like it was nothing. He bound her and made her face me. She was crying, but she wasn't afraid. She'd never been afraid of anything in her life. She told me that it was alright and that I when it was over that I should live my life and be happy and that no matter what, she would always be mine. And then that bastard… he… he…"

The young man's grief was palpable, and Sirius couldn't help but feel for the kid. Before he could stop himself, he was at the kid's side, with an arm around him as Harry's legs gave out from under him. It was heart wrenching to see this kid clinging to him as his grief all but shut him down, and it reminded him of the day he'd lost Samantha, and when he'd found James' lifeless body. He remembered when he had found Lily and the pain in her cries as she held the body of her child.

It was then that Sirius began to wonder about the humanity in sending the boy back. Was it cruel to send him back to a world where he had nothing? Hadn't he said that everyone he cared for was gone? And would it be so wrong to have him stay and give him a chance to find some kind of happiness?

"It isn't my choice." Sirius reminded himself. "But maybe we could persuade the kid..."

* * *

Harry awoke a few hours later with a throbbing headache. He couldn't remember falling asleep or Sirius leaving and guessed he might have just passed out. He briefly wondered why grieving was so exhausting. If that was the case, Harry wasn't sure he wanted to do any more. Magical exhaustion was enough.

Harry got out of bed thinking he'd like to get some food, as he hadn't eaten anything since breakfast. He wondered if the house elves would be willing to make him something. Maybe some roast chicken, or a steak and kidney pie. And he thought he could really go for a couple hundred treacle tarts.

Double checking to make sure he had his wand, Harry went to the door intent on trying to locate the kitchens only to find someone on the other side of the door poised to knock. Their eyes locked, and Harry felt as if he'd had the wind knocked out of him. He really hadn't expected to see her again, not after she had left the previous night sobbing.

"Oh." Lily stammered, surprised by his sudden appearance. "I uh… We've been… I… I thought that perhaps you and I could t-talk."

Harry found it too difficult to speak, but did manage a nod. After another second his brain was kick started and moved back to let Lily into his room. She entered, watching him with fascination as she passed him. After he closed the door, the two turned and just stared at each other for the longest time.

"Sirius was right." Lily managed to say after what felt like an eternity. "You really do look like James. If you wore glasses, and had brown eyes, you might be a dead ringer for him." Her voice hitched. Harry could only just stare, though Lily saw that he was fighting tears of his own.

"Sirius thought that maybe it would be a good idea for you and I t-to talk." She stammered nervously.

"I can't believe you're here." Harry said in wonder as he watched this woman. "I would have given everything I ever owned just to hear your voice for a minute, and now…"

Lily smiled at that and nodded her understanding.

"I would have given anything just to see you, and now you're standing in front of me. But you're not actually my son, and I'm not really your mother, and this is so confusing. I never imagined when I agreed to all this that it would hurt so damned much." she confessed.

"I don't want to hurt you." Harry said sadly, taking a step back as if his proximity to her was causing her pain.

"I know." Lily said quickly, taking a step forward. "You didn't ask for any of this. You didn't ask to come here. We ripped you from your home and all the people who love you and…"

"You may have saved my life." Harry said quickly. Lily flinched at that, not expecting to hear that from this young man.

"Dumbledore told us that you won the war." Lily said, clearly confused.

"I did." Harry nodded. "I finished off my world's Voldemort, but in the process… There was nothing left when it was all over. My mother and father were the first to die, and my … the girl I was wanted to be with was the last to die. Just before I was pulled into this world, I wanted to kill myself just so I could be with them. I mean what had been the point of it all if they were all gone?"

Lily gasped, her hand covering her mouth. Harry found it hard to look at the woman who looked exactly like the woman he'd only ever seen in photographs. She looked at him with eyes full of sadness, and again she took a step closer, and Harry fought to control the shiver that crawled up his spine.

It was then that Lily understood why Sirius had been so insistent that she talk to the boy. The poor young man had fought to win a war that he likely had been thrust into and had somehow managed to win. Yet there was no reward for him. The hero didn't get the girl because the girl had died.

Lily had no idea what possessed her to do it, but the urge was overpowering. Before she could stop herself, she had embraced the young man. Her heart felt as if it might burst in her chest, especially after a few seconds, the boy, Harry, began to shake and then to cry. It was clear to Lily then that Harry was indeed broken, and he needed help in healing before they sent him back to his world.

Maybe it was her motherly instinct for the boy who could have possibly been her son, but Lily felt that she had to help him somehow.

"Harry, would you like to come stay with me?" Lily asked.


	5. Chapter 5

Lily awoke to the sweet smells of someone cooking. It took her a moment to remember that she had a guest, and it was likely that guest who was rummaging around in her kitchen.

It was curiosity more than anything that got her out of bed, and dressed in jeans and a jumper before heading down to find out just what her guest was up to. She had to admit that she was still frightened of this person. There was so much she didn't know about him or whether he was to be trusted. For all she knew, he could be an extraordinary actor and have had them all fooled. Yet, there was just something about him that told her she was being ridiculous. His eyes.

She could see the pain in those green orbs so plainly, that she felt foolish for even thinking he was lying.

She found her guest, dressed in the dirty and tattered clothes he'd arrived in three days ago, and decided that today she would take him to get something else to wear. After all, they just had no idea how long it would be until Dumbledore could send him home.

That thought made Lily cringe. To send him back to the world he had been taken from, where everything he knew and loved was gone seemed so cruel to her. She wasn't alone in her thinking either.

"Good morning." Harry said as Lily arrived in the kitchen.

"You really don't need to…" Lily started to say, but Harry quickly cut her off.

"I've never been good at being a guest." Harry claimed, setting mug of tea on the table, along with warm syrup. "Ginny's mother said it was my most charming fault."

Lily snickered at that as she sat down. "Seems like you were raised decently at least."

Harry shrugged slightly as he went back to the stove and began dishing up pancakes.

"Aunt Petunia wasn't fond of me at all." He stated. "I don't know the details, but the two of you had some sort of falling out because you had magic and she didn't. Uncle Vernon was a different story. Aunt Petunia would punish me for something… I got a better grade on a test than her son or something, and after everyone went to bed, Uncle Vernon would wake me up, and make me a sundae. He wasn't a very happy person. Like he was disappointed by his life, you know?"

Lily nodded as Harry sat down, sliding a plate of pancakes in front of her.

"He told me on my tenth birthday that he wished his son was half the man he knew I would be. He just… he always believed in me, and went behind Petunia's back to show me that I mattered. They got into some pretty big arguments over it when he got caught, but he kept on taking me on special trips and things. When he died… Aunt Petunia blamed me for his death, even though it was a heart attack. Uncle Vernon was a really big man. Dudley was even worse." Harry sighed.

"What happened?" Lily pressed, curious to know more about this young man who, if things had been different, could have been her son.

"It doesn't matter." Harry shook his head. "Everything changed again when I started going to Hogwarts. Everything Aunt Petunia had kept hidden from me came out. She had told me and my Uncle that you and dad died in a car crash. I don't know if Uncle Vernon ever knew about magic, though I think he suspected at the very least. Especially with my bouts of accidental magic."

"You started very early in this world. You and the cat…" Lily began to laugh softly. Harry looked up with interest.

"Your first word was kitty. You just loved him. You'd summon him from across the room. He scratched you up good a few times. Yet, nearly every morning I'd find that damned cat curled up next to you in your crib. He even hissed at me once when I came to get you." Lily laughed. Harry sniggered and shook his head at the mental images.

"It's a bit shocking for me to hear my sister was so mean to you though." Lily said after a few quiet moments. "She adored you here. Then again, we never had a falling out… well except for about Severus. She really liked him when we were young. But he didn't like her as much."

"Sirius mentioned it the other day." Harry remarked.

"What else did he tell you?" Lily questioned, looking a bit disturbed. Harry shrugged.

"Just a real brief history of you lot in this world." He said. "It was strange for me to hear that not only did you and my father like each other from the moment you met, but that Snape was part of the Marauders.

"The marauders?" Lily asked with a incredulous expression.

"Isn't that what you lot called yourselves?" Harry asked.

"No." Lily shook her head. "We didn't have any sort of name. We were just six friends who got into a lot tr… adventures at school."

"Uh-huh." Harry nodded, making Lily blush and laugh at the same time.

"And I bet you were the standard by which all other students should strive for?" Lily challenged.

"Me? Oh hell no. Trouble found me no matter what I tried. I'm just lucky I had Ginny, Draco, Neville and Daphne with me, or things would have been worse." Harry claimed as he finished his breakfast. He rose from his seat and took Lily's plate as she was finished as well. He took the dishes to the sink and began washing up.

"I think we should go to London." Lily said, getting to her feet. "You need clothes."

"I'm fine." He said. "There's no need…"

"Harry, you have one set of clothes and they're filthy. Even the world's strongest scourgify spell couldn't clean those. Plus, you're likely going to be here for a while, and so far as I'm aware, you have no money in this world. So, we're going to get you some clothes, and if you feel bad about it, you can continue cooking breakfast for me while you're staying here. It's a bit nice having someone cook for me, especially as it was so good."

Harry stared at her in contemplative silence before he crossed his arms. "Breakfast and dinner, and I'll wash the dishes as well."

Lily laughed, but nodded. "Deal. Give me five minutes, and we'll head out."

It actually took ten minutes, but Lily and Harry headed down the garden path until they were outside the wards when Lily took Harry's elbow and apparate him into an alley in downtown London. Lily turned to Harry and suggested that he place a glamour on his clothes or people might ask questions. Harry gave a nod, and a moment later was standing in clean blue jeans and black polo.

"Good enough." Lily remarked and led him into the city.

"Strange how much it looks exactly like my London." Harry noted as he looked around.

"Other than the people, how is this world different from your own?" Lily wondered.

"It's really just little things. Like at Hogwarts. Suits of armor were in different places, or paintings had different frames. Subtle things like that really. The strangest thing for me is seeing people who I knew. You, Sirius, Remus and Dumbledore… all of you died, and I was present at every one, though yours was the only one I couldn't remember because I was only a year old."

"Well, it explains why you thought you were dead when we pulled you through." Lily said, with a hint of guilt and sadness.

"It was weird because I was sure Ginny and my father would be there…" Harry trailed off.

"What was she like?" Lily asked. Harry got a far away look in his eye.

"Annoying, irritating, downright ruthless on the Quidditch pitch." Harry scowled and then his face softened. "Beautiful, smart and fiercely loyal. She could always see through me, and she never sugar coated anything to save my feelings. She was everything I had ever wanted, and far more than I deserved. And I never got to tell her that I loved her."

Lily watched Harry's face for a minute as they entered a department store.

"She understood me better than anyone. It was like she could see through me from the very beginning."

"How did you meet?" Lily asked.

"We met on the train in our first year. She didn't want to sit with her brother and I was sitting by myself. I didn't know it at the time, but I was sort of this legend. The Boy-Who-Lived is what they called me. Anyway, she recognized me because my scar was famous, and she looked at me like there was something wrong, and she began looking angry. I asked her what was wrong and she told me that her father was a big fat liar. " Harry smirked. Lily looked at him with a questioning look and Harry shrugged.

"Her father used to tell her stories about the Great Harry Potter and all the adventures he had. I guess there was a series of children's stories about me and they clearly had my description wrong. But I won her over when the food trolley came and I bought one of everything and we shared them. Nothing like a mess of sweets to endear yourself to a girl."

"That usually works." Lily laughed along with Harry. They had arrived at the men's department and were now perusing jeans.

"She and I were both sorted into Gryffindor with her twin brother Ron, and Neville Longbottom who became one of my closest friends. Ron and I butted heads from the word go, especially after I accepted Draco Malfoy's offer of friendship. Ginny wasn't too keen on that either because the Malfoys and the Weasley's had a long rivalry. But Draco turned out to be a pretty cool guy with a lot of pressure on him. Ginny quickly realized Draco was pretty cool, and the four of us were pretty tight from then on." Harry smiled fondly at the memory.

"You were friends with a Malfoy?" Lily looked shocked. "Lucius Malfoy is one of Voldemort's most ardent supporters here."

"He was in my world too." Harry said picking out a couple of shirts he liked. "Draco was being raised to follow in his father's footsteps, but he admitted to me a few years later that he'd always doubted his father's beliefs. The main one being how Muggleborns could be lesser than Purebloods. Muggleborns never produced squibs for one thing, and the other being that if Muggleborns weren't as good, why would they be allowed in Hogwarts? When we started school he was sorted into Slytherin where he was surrounded by Purebloods, and most of them thought the same as his father. But then he found out some people in his house were Halfbloods, and they were pretty strong, and then he saw a few Muggleborns that were far more powerful than even his father, at least that's how Draco saw it. Then hanging out with me and Ginny and Neville, and learning about the muggle world… he really started to see that his father, and by extension, Voldemort were wrong."

"I can't even imagine one of the Malfoys taking a stand like that."

"It cost him." Harry grimaced. "His father killed him. I don't know all the details, but his mother came to see me before she left the country. Draco told his father he would never take the Dark Mark, and that everything his father stood for was bullshit. They fought and his father …"

Lily clutched Harry's shoulder and squeezed it comfortingly. Harry gave her a soft nod of appreciation and turned away, looking for more clothing.

"So when did you and Ginny finally get together then?" Lily wondered.

"We…We didn't" Harry sighed heavily. "By the time I realized how I felt about her, we were neck deep in the war. I couldn't put anyone in danger with Voldemort hell bent on killing me. The stupid thing was that by the time I realized that she was in danger no matter what… the war was nearly over. I told myself that as soon as Voldemort was dead, I was going to tell Ginny everything."

"But you never got the chance." Lily said, fighting back her own tears. Harry merely shook his head.

Lily felt her heart break for this young man who could have been her own son if things had been different. A young man who'd sacrificed everything to save his world. A true hero in every sense of the word. Lily started to wonder if they asked him if he would actually fight for them, or if he would refuse and let them deal with their own mess as they should.

"I knew the day I met James Potter that I would marry him." Lily smiled fondly. "From the moment our eyes met, I knew there was something there. It took us nearly five years for it to blossom, but I wouldn't have traded any of it. James was a arrogant prat, and had to be the center of attention. But he was extremely loyal to people he cared about. What impressed me, and got me to like him so quickly was when he stuck up for Severus on the train. Some older kid shoved Sev out of his way as he and James were coming out of the bathroom after changing into their school robes. James called the older kid a name. This guys was twice James size, and James was demanding an apology. The kid shoved James, and Sev and started to laugh, but James hit him with a lockjaw hex. Something he'd learned from an uncle or something, and then warned the older boy that he knew far worse curses and if he ever shoved one of his friends again, he'd see to it the kid felt his full wrath. He had just met Severus and was defending him like they'd been life long friends."

"My father hated Snape in my world." Harry shook his head. "And Snape returned those feelings. So much so that when I went to school, Snape took his hatred out on me."

"Do you know if Severus and I were friends in your world?" Lily asked hesitantly.

"From what I learned, Snape and you met about a year before Hogwarts." Harry began.

"I knew Severus for three years before I went to Hogwarts." Lily nodded, looking intrigued.

"In my world he had a crush on you from the word go. You two were friends until OWLs, when my father… who you hated by the way, pulled yet another prank on him. You came to Snape's rescue, but Snape had been so humiliated that he crossed a line, and called you a Mudblood. That was, so far as I know, the last time you spoke. He became a follower of Voldemort and then turned spy when he learned that Voldemort was targeting you and my father because of a prophecy about me."

"So far it's pretty close to what happened here." Lily observed.

"Snape begged Voldemort to spare your life, and then went to Dumbledore to beg that he help protect you. But it was all part of some big trick." Harry said with a slight snarl.

"How do you mean?" Lily asked.

"Voldemort wanted a spy in the Order because he feared Dumbledore." Harry began looking at Lily meaningfully. "Plus, Dumbledore knew the prophecy, and Voldemort knew that Dumbledore would likely have protected whomever the prophecy referred to. So, send in the very person who'd been caught eavesdropping and make him act all repentive, and bam, instant spy."

"Oh my god." Lily said softly as she imagined her world if the Severus Snape she had known had been more like the one Harry knew. It was a very difficult thing to try and picture.

"Snape's only request was to have you for himself." Harry went on. "But no one could have foreseen you sacrificing yourself for me. When Voldemort was gone, Snape figured out pretty quickly that he had a good thing at Hogwarts. He was safe there, and under Dumbledore's protection. But his hatred for my father was transferred to me when I began school. I represented everything he'd lost, and he loved to bully me. Not enough to where Dumbledore would notice I was being singled out though. Anyway, Snape played his part extremely well, until Dumbledore died, and then he showed his true colors, and declared his loyalty to Voldemort openly. The toughest duel I ever had was facing Snape. I should have killed him, and would have if Ginny hadn't stepped in between us. I had beaten him, and humiliated him. He was broken and Ginny thought that was enough. She didn't want me to become a murderer. I already had quite a bit of blood on my hands by then, but I had never killed someone in cold blood. She saved my soul that night."

"She sounds really amazing." Lily said softly.

"She was." Harry smiled to himself.

"I'm so sorry." Lily said. "No one person should ever have to suffer the way you did."

"What about you?" Harry said. "I can't imagine things have been easy for you either."

"No, no they haven't been." Lily gave a sad little smile and tossed a pair of jeans at Harry. "Try those."

With a swish of his wand, the scene froze, and Dumbledore stepped forward to gaze inquisitively at the locket that Harry Potter held out for his two friends to see. Once again, Dumbledore thanked the heavens that the boy had been willing to make copies of his memories for the headmaster to look over and learn from. Though he knew that the Voldemort in Harry's world was different from the one in his own, Dumbledore still held out hope that perhaps they paved similar paths.

* * *

"So that's a horcrux." Sirius Black said as he came closer to inspect the rather mundane looking item, a heavy golden locket with an engraved S on the front.

"An item that belonged to Salazar Slytherin himself." Dumbledore stated. "Or at least the Slytherin from young Harry's world. I suspect that our Lord Voldemort followed a similar path. By Harry's account, our worlds are not to dissimilar."

"Any chance our Slytherin had a locket?" Remus Lupin asked as he examined the locket now, wishing he could hold it and really inspect it.

"It is possible, though it is hard to say. There aren't many artifacts of the founders to still be in existence." Dumbledore said as he continued examining the locket for any hint of what it was supposed to contain.

"How did Harry say that he and his friends found out about these things again?" Sirius asked as he looked at the teenaged redhead girl That Harry had spoken so fondly of. Ginny Weasley had a lot in common with Lily. Slender of build and red headed. Ginny appeared to be rather intelligent from what Sirius had seen in Harry's memories, and he couldn't fault the kid for having strong feelings for her. She stood now with her arms crossed, and a worried expression on her face, something Sirius could understand given the story Harry had just given about finding the locket in the Black Family home.

"The version of myself in that world had known, or at least suspected what they were and how to find them. According to Harry, I dabbled in the dark arts and understood much more than I do in this world. I had also apparently collected memories such as this from people who had known Voldemort in his youth. I feel this will prove much more difficult here." Dumbledore sighed. What is problematic is that I can find no references to Tom Riddle in any of the schools records, though he must have attended school here. There are no transcripts, or even reports on medical examinations. I've asked my contacts at the ministry and they can't even find a birth record."

"Some of his most trusted followers might be able to tell us if Voldemort had anything like this." Sirius suggested turning away from the girl to look at the Headmaster.

"It is possible." Dumbledore agreed.

"Sounds like we're going to have to have a few conversations with or friends in masks." Remus smirked. Sirius gave a shrug, and Dumbledore sighed heavily.

Dumbledore then flicked his wand and the memory continued. The three men watched as Harry explained how Dumbledore had figured out where the locket had been hidden, and how a House Elf by the name of Kreacher who had belonged to the Black family had played a large part in the locket's history, and eventually retrieved the cursed thing for the headmaster of Harry's world. When memory Harry finished, the scene faded, and the three men found themselves back in Dumbledore's office.

"So we're going under the assumption that our world's Voldemort found and imbued seven significant artifacts with fragments of his soul to prevent himself from ever dying?" Remus Lupin asked as he sat down. "You know it's crazy, right?"

"Indeed." Dumbledore nodded. "Yet we can't deny the evidence of it. He was vanquished, all three of us saw for ourselves the after math of Godric's Hollow. We also know that after thirteen years. Lord Voldemort returned. The evidence supports the idea that he somehow tied his soul to this world. I think for the time being we should assume that Voldemort created at least one of these abominations."

"We need to talk to someone who knows how he resurrected himself." Sirius said thoughtfully. "He couldn't have done it on his own. You both saw the kid's memory of that Voldemort's resurrection. He had Peter taking care of him and performing a ritual. what if our Peter did the same?"

"It would kind of make sense." Remus nodded. "We haven't seen Peter on his own in quite sometime." Remus added. "If he did help, it makes sense that Voldemort would want to protect him in case he was captured and might spill his guts, or we used Veritaserum."

"There is a way we can learn what happened without trying to get our hands on Peter Pettigrew." Dumbledore said, avoiding the eyes of the two men, knowing exactly how they were going to react to his suggestion. "We have someone already entrenched in Voldemort's forces who could find some of the answers we seek."

"I was wondering how long it would be before you suggested using him." Sirius groaned.

"You know how we feel about him, Albus." Remus said, sitting up a bit straighter, his expression darkening.

"Severus will have greater success in seeking the knowledge we need." Dumbledore tried. "He is trusted by the Death Eaters, and likely won't draw too much scrutiny if he were to wonder just how the Dark Lord managed to defy death, and who was involved."

"Then why hasn't he found out already?" Sirius snapped. "It seems like something he should have tried to learn about years ago."

"Because until now, none of us ever bothered to wonder how Lord Voldemort managed what we believed was impossible. We were all too concerned with preventing death and destruction at Voldemort's hands to bother with wondering how he managed to cheat death. No we are, and unless either of you has a better idea how to proceed, Severus Snape is our best option."

Sirius and Remus looked at each other, both knowing the old Headmaster was right. Remus sighed, while Sirius grumbled a few choice swear words as he went to Dumbledore's liquor cabinet and filled a glass with brandy and downed it in two swallows.

"You had better make sure he doesn't get anywhere near Lily." Sirius warned.

"I promised her that she would never have to see him, and I meant it. So far as Severus will know, we have found a clue in how to defeat Voldemort, and that will be all.

"I don't like it." Remus said. "But, what other option do we have? Kidnapping Peter will prove extremely difficult, and likely take months."

"Damn it." Sirius growled. "I really don't want to be indebted to that greasy traitor."

* * *

"Professor McGonagall?" Harry asked as he answered the door to find the Hogwarts transfiguration teacher standing on the porch. "What are you doing here? Is everything…"

"Everything is fine, Mister Potter. Lily asked me to come for dinner. She thought that I might be able to ease your mind a bit." Professor McGonagall stated with a gentle smile.

"Minerva!" Lily said coming from the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron. "Thank you for coming."

"It is my pleasure." Minerva said. "After all, it seems I am the only one who has not had a real opportunity to talk to our visitor.

She turned to look at Harry who was watching her with a fond smile.

"Something the matter, Mister Potter?' McGonagall asked out of curiosity for his expression. Harry shook his head quickly.

"No." he said. "I've just… I never saw Professor McGonagall smile. Not really smile anyway."

"Why don't we sit down." Lily offered. "Dinner is just about ready."

"So, what do you think of our world, Mister Potter?" McGonagall asked as she and Harry took their seats at the dining table, as Lily put the final preparations to the meal.

"It's familiar." Harry said with a snigger. "So familiar that if I wasn't aware of how I came to be here, I'd think I was dreaming, or dead and this was the next adventure, as Dumbledore called it."

"How does it differ, besides the obvious I mean." McGonagall asked.

"It's actually mostly little things. The obvious is that people who died in my world are alive and healthy here, or rather it seems that way. I've only seen four of you. But there's loads of little things. Like around Hogwarts. Suits of armor are in different places. Passageways that I've used millions of times are not there at all. Paintings have different frames. But there's more… you for instance."

"Me?" McGonagall asked, her eyes widening.

"Like I said earlier… you never smiled in my world. You were one of the strictest teachers at Hogwarts, but you weren't mean. Just strict."

"I told him the strictest teacher at Hogwarts was Flitwick, and he didn't believe me." lily said and Harry shook his head.

"I can't even begin to imagine Flitwick being remote irritated, much less strict." Harry said and McGonagall chuckled.

"You'd be very surprised then." She remarked. "My gods, I can't even begin to imagine how strange this must be for you. Either of you."

"It's been awkward at times, but it's been interesting to hear all about his world, and the people in it. The differences alone are intriguing." Lily smiled. "Apparently Remus is a werewolf, not just a wolf animagus."

"Really?" McGonagall asked. Harry nodded.

"Minerva, I was hoping that perhaps we could fill Harry in on the counterparts to his friends in this world. You have an uncanny knack for remembering students, and they might still be students right now." Lily suggested.

"I suppose it couldn't hurt." McGonagall gave a shrug and turned to Harry. "Is there any one in particular you'd like to hear about first?"

Harry's heart leapt into his throat. There was a few people he wanted to know about, but only one that really mattered to him. A small voice in the back of his mind told him that it wasn't going to be the girl he knew. None of them were going to be the people he knew. They had different lives and different experiences, and he hadn't been a apart of any of it. But he still had to know.

"Ginny" he choked out. He didn't see Lily behind him as she clutched her chest and tried not to cry. "Ginny Weasley.

McGonagall smiled softly.

"Ginny Weasley is one of My Gryffindors. She will be starting her sixth year this year."

"Sixth year?' Harry looked puzzled. "She's not in her seventh year?"

"No." McGonagall looked puzzled.

"What about her twin, Ron?" Harry asked.

"Ronald Weasley will be in his seventh year, but they are not twins. The Weasley twins are Fred and George." McGonagall explained.

"Really?" Harry looked thunderstruck. "The Weasleys only had one set of twins here? That's so bizarre."

"You're telling me in your world there are two sets of Weasley twins?" McGonagall now looked frightened. "Gods help that school. We have enough to deal with, with only one set of troublemakers. I have never felt so relieved as when Fred and George graduated."

"Those two graduated?" Harry again looked shocked. "Wow, there mother would have been so proud."

"I think we need to back up a bit." McGonagall said. "You're telling me that Fred and George Weasley in your world did not graduate. Were they deviants or something? Did they get expelled?"

Harry began to laugh and shook his head. "No, nothing like that. They were deadest on opening a joke shop. The best ever conceived. And they did too, with a little help from me. In their Seventh year we had this tyrant from the Ministry, Dolores Umbridge. She came into the school and basically tried to turn it into a prison. Fred and George finally had enough, and because they had pooled enough money, and had a strong business plan in place, they left school, but not before putting on the most epic show of defiance. They had erect what they called a portable swamp. They stole their own brooms back from Umbridge who'd confiscated them earlier in the year, and left. I'm not doing it justice in explaining it."

"Perhaps not, but I would not put it past our own Weasley twins to do something similar. They don't own their own joke shop as of yet, but the do have a highly successful mail order service." McGonagall said.

"Good to hear that not everything has changed." Harry smiled. "But Ginny and Ron aren't twins here?"

"No." McGonagall said.

"Do they play quidditch?" Harry asked.

"Ginny is seeker for Gryffindor. One of the best in recent memory. Ronald on the other hand has no desire to play, to my knowledge. He has never tried out for the team, and prefers the chess board." McGonagall explained.

"Ok, now that is shocking." Harry asserted. He then thought a bout someone else he wanted to know more about. "What about Draco Malfoy?"

"Malfoy?" McGonagall asked, not sure she had heard correctly. "You were friends with Draco Malfoy?"

"A braver, more noble, and truer friend I'd be hard pressed to find." Harry said thickly.

"Oh how I wish that was the case here." McGonagall sighed. Harry looked up inquisitively.

"Draco Malfoy is exactly like his father. Cruel, calculating, and cold. He has striven for power the moment he stepped into Hogwarts. He's a very intelligent young man, and is extremely good at covering his tracks. He has been suspected many times of wrong doing, but we've never been able to prove it."

"That's disappointing." Harry said sadly. "Draco… Draco stood defiant of his father in the summer before our sixth year, when his father volunteered Draco to serve Voldemort. Draco never wanted his father's legacy, and becoming friends with me was the first step in breaking free of that. In the end, it was that same step that sealed his fate."

McGonagall and Lily looked anxious to hear more, but neither spoke for fear Harry might not continue.

"His mother came to see me before she fled the country. She felt I needed to know what kind of man her son had become because of me. She wanted me to know how grateful she had been for what I had done for her son, and she told me how he had died with his head held high."

"He… he stood against Lucius?" McGonagall asked. Harry nodded.

"According to his mother, Draco told his father he wanted nothing to do with Voldemort. They fought, and then they dueled. Lucius hated Draco. He always told him what a waste he thought his son was. He was a constant disappointment and all that. But I guess he got quite a shock when they dueled because Draco really hurt him. Lucius was much more knowledgeable and far nastier with his spells, and the duel didn't last long. Narcissa wasn't even allowed to bury her son. She told me this and then left the country. I have no idea if she survived or not."

"That's… that's so horrible." McGonagall said, her voice shaking.

"When I saw Lucius next, I fought him along with Neville Longbottom, Ginny and Draco's girlfriend, Daphne Greengrass. I'm sort of ashamed to say that we were not merciful. Daphne… Daphne was the worst of us."

"Daphne Greengrass?" McGonagall asked looking startled. "You're right about how different our worlds are Harry. I can't picture Daphne Greengrass and Draco Malfoy being civil to each other, much less dating."

Harry ran his hands through his hair and hung his head. Lily watched him, catching McGonagall's eye. Both woman seeming to come to the same conclusion. This young man was heartsick and desperately searching for something close enough to what he knew that he could find some comfort, but he wasn't getting it. Lily wondered how she could help this poor boy who could have been her own child if things had been different for either of them.

"I have to help him." Lily thought to herself. "Somehow I've got to help him through his grief."


	6. Chapter 6

"He's lonely Albus." Lily sighed as she paced in front of the headmaster's desk. She, Remus and Sirius had come to the castle to be updated on what Dumbledore had discovered in regards to their enemy as well as report on young Harry's time in their world.

"I think it would be good to get him around normal kids his own age." Lily stated.

"The problem is that no matter who we try and set him up with, it's probably going to remind him of people he lost." Remus offered. "That may not be the best idea either."

"But it's wrong to keep him isolated." Sirius remarked. "We can keep him company and all, and it'd be good to have him close in case we need his advice or whatever. But, he needs people his own age to relate to."

"You're right." Dumbledore said to Sirius. "It is wrong to keep him isolated. However, Remus is also correct. Everyone that Harry meets potentially will remind him of people he knew in his own world, and it could be problematic. While he claims that he is aware the people are different here, a lifetime of experiences will make it tough to differentiate the people form his world, from people in this one."

"So what do we do?" Lily asked with concern.

"Perhaps allowing him to spend time with familiar faces might be of help." Dumbledore thought aloud. "While they will be different from the people he knew, they would still be familiar enough that it might put him at ease. If he were agreeable, I think we might be able to arrange a visit to the Weasleys, who as it happens, will be throwing a birthday party for their youngest daughter."

"Are you insane?" Lily gaped. "He was in love with that girl Albus!"

"I'm with lily, that's insane." Sirius agreed. "Albus, that's just this side of torture."

"Harry has stated to all of us now that he understands people are different here. It will be a chance to see if he can actually separate them in his mind and get to know people here. It will also get Harry around people his own age, and perhaps help him a bit with his grief." Dumbledore said with a soft smile.

"You're out of your ever loving mind." Sirius stated sourly.

"Perhaps.' Dumbledore said sadly. "But unfortunately the Weasleys are the only family within the Order that have children of Harry's age. I am not close to any other family, and would find it difficult convincing nearly anyone to allow Harry to visit. At the Weasley's party there are likely to be more than a few younger people whom Harry may form a bond with. You have all said that isolating him is no better, so I say we allow Harry to make up his own mind."

"And what if he does go?" Remus asked. "What if he goes, and seeing that girl overwhelms him or he has a breakdown or something?"

"I'll go." Lily said. "I'll go with him and watch over him. I've spent far too much time on my own as it is so maybe this will be good for both of us."

"We could go as well." Sirius started but lily shook her head.

"I appreciate it, but you two need to get your hands on one of Voldemort's followers so we can find out about his horcruxes. Where are with being able to send Harry home?"

"I have received word this morning that a new mirror would be constructed. The family did not wish for the secret of its construction to get out. They said it would take several months to complete. They were... quite upset to learn of the original mirror's destruction."

"What?' Sirius sniggered. "They were upset you destroyed a priceless family heirloom? What selfish people."

"Stop it." Lily chastised, though she was smiling. "So what is Harry supposed to do in the mean time?"

"Well I've got to say I'm quite curious about the kid's potential." Sirius said. "I want to see exactly what he can do."

"We agreed he wouldn't fight our war." Remus said quickly. Sirius held up his hands in submission.

"I'm not asking him to fight for us." He claimed. "I just want to know that he can protect Lily if the need arises."

"I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself." Lily said coldly with narrowed eyes.

"I already know what you're capable of." Sirius said flatly. "I want to know what the kid can do."

You want to duel him?" Remus asked looking appalled.

"Let's say I want to help him release some of the anger that comes with grief." Sirius claimed with a rather mischievous grin, heading to the office door. "He's in the Great hall, right?"

"Sirius, don't you dare..." Lily warned getting to her feet, and chasing Sirius out of the office. Dumbledore and Remus looked at each other before getting to their feet and following.

* * *

Harry was standing in the center of the Great Hall, admiring how truly big the room was without the House tables. He found the stained glass window truly beautiful, especially with the afternoon sun shining through, lighting the hall in Blue, Red, Yellow and Green. It was strange for him to be standing here, knowing that in his world, the Great Hall had been nearly destroyed by giants. Even though it wasn't the Hogwarts he knew, it still felt like home, and Harry couldn't help but smile.

"...Sirius I forbid it."

Lily's voice reached his ears, and Harry turned around in curiosity as Sirius Black entered the Great Hall, a maniacal look in his eyes. Lily, Remus and Dumbledore followed him. Sirius had his wand out, and Harry took an involuntary step back, going instantly into a fighting stance, and grabbing his own wand from his pocket.

"See, he's already to go." Sirius said loudly.

"Harry, you don't have to do anything if you don't want." Lily said slipping in between Sirius and Harry. "He's being a hippogriff's arse."

"What the hell is going on?" Harry demanded, looking to Dumbledore.

"It appears that Sirius is curious about your magical abilities." The old Headmaster stated.

"My abilities?" Harry questioned. "I've taken down a Dark Lord and half his army. What have you done?" Harry snapped.

"That's what you say, but I never saw anything in those memories to back it up." Sirius challenged.

"Enough Sirius!" Lily shouted, getting angry now.

"Come on Lils; let's see what this whelp can do. He supposed to be so bad ass, let's find out if he's more talk than action!" Sirius said, eyeing Harry coldly. "What do you say kid?"

Everyone turned to look at Harry expectantly. Harry saw Lily give a shake of her head, telling him that he didn't have to prove anything. Her eyes were kind, and filled with concern for him. However, the three men all looked curious. Harry thought about it for a few moments. He knew he still wasn't back to one hundred percent yet, but he was loads better. The last week and a half had been restful which was the best thing one could do for magical exhaustion. Besides, it would be interesting to see how people dueled in this world.

"It's alright Lily." Harry said. "But what's say we make this interesting."

"Interesting?" Sirius began to smirk. "How so?"

"Well, if I win... you owe me a favor. No questions, you just fulfill the favor." Harry smiled.

"And if I win?" Sirius asked a calculating smile on his face.

"I'm not really in a position to offer much." Harry smirked.

"How about you owe me a favor?" Sirius folded his arms.

"Done." Harry nodded.

Lily looked between the two and groaned loudly before stepping out of the way. "You'd better not hurt him Sirius!"

"Oh don't worry Lily; the kid took down a Dark Lord. I'm sure he can handle OOMPH!"

* * *

Sirius awoke to find Remus and Lily laughing softly. Sirius groaned as he sat up, his head pounding, and his hands burning.

"What the hell happened?" Sirius asked.

"You owe Harry a favor." Lily replied, still chuckling.

"I have never seen anyone move as fast or cast as accurately as that kid." Remus claimed. "Not even Moody in his prime."

"What did he hit me with?" Sirius groaned again as he settled back in the bed in the hospital wing.

"Three bludgeoners, two stingers, a tripping jinx, some sort of fireball, all before hanging you upside down and dropping you on your head." Remus ticked off.

"Don't forget the fire ants he conjured in Sirius' pants." Lily reminded. Remus nodded.

"No, I don't think I'll ever forget the dancing." Remus guffawed.

"Where's the kid now?" Sirius asked grumpily.

"He's with Dumbledore. He wanted to see how Harry defeated his Dark Lord, and talk more about the horcruxes. He's also going to talk to him about going to the Weasley party." Lily said. "Why did you want to fight him?"

"I didn't want to fight him. I wanted to help him." Sirius said. "When James died, I was furious. I was filled with all this anger and it was eating me up inside. I wanted to die because of all the anger I felt, and I just thought maybe I could help the kid siphon off some of that negativity. Now I think I'd like him to teach me how to be that fast."

"Don't forget accurate." Remus said. "The only time he missed was when he wanted to. It was as if he could predict how and where you would move. I got to say that he would be a great asset for us."

"We said he wouldn't fight." Lily said her jovial tone fading.

"I know we did." Remus said quickly. "And I'm not saying we should ask him. I just said that he was really good, and someone like him would be extremely good for our side."

"I think I'd like to see him fight before I fully agree." Sirius said. "However, having been the recipient of his power, I'd have to say Remus isn't wrong."

"He's not going to fight." Lily said firmly.

"What if he wants to?' Remus asked. When Lily glowered at him, the wolf animagus held up his hands to ward off her wrath. "I'm not saying we ask him, and I won't even think about trying to convince him. All I'm asking is what if, of his own free will, Harry decides he wants to fight with us? Are you going to stop him? He isn't your son Lily."

"I know that!" Lily snapped. "But it doesn't mean I don't care about him. I can't tell him what to do and what not to do, and if he chooses to fight, I can't stop him. But so long as he's here, I think it's our responsibility to protect him. He's our guest. We took him from his world against his will, so we owe it to him to keep him safe until he can go home."

"And what if he doesn't want to?" Sirius asked breathlessly. Lily turned to look at him with surprise.

"Come on Lils, you've spent nearly two weeks with the kid. You have to have heard what happened to him. If he goes back, what is there for him? Everyone he cares for is gone. He wanted to kill himself. We've given him a reprieve. A chance to heal, and to come to terms with everything. Maybe even a second chance for happiness. Would any of us deny him that?"

"I just want him to be happy." Lily said softly as tears filled her eyes.

"Like any mother would." Remus said with a soft smile.

* * *

A week later, Harry and Lily found themselves at the start of a path at the bottom of a hill that felt all too familiar to Harry. He let go of Lily's arm and took in the sight before him, his heart hammering in his chest. Up the hill was a house full of people he had known, though they were not the same. Just mirror images of them. He hadn't even seen them and it was already messing with his head.

Still, he wanted to do this. He had to. At least, that's what he kept telling himself.

"Are you ready for this?" Lily asked with a look of concern.

"I have no idea." Harry replied. "But if I've learned anything from life it's that you really can't prepare for stuff like this."

Lily gave him a small encouraging smile and the two began the trek up the hill. When they crested the top, Harry got his first real shock.

The Weasley home was nothing like he remembered in his world. Gone was the towering haphazard shack that was held together with magic and hope. What stood in its place was nothing short of amazing. A three-story house with three tall oak trees in front. Beyond the house, Harry could see the apple orchard and the pond, but the chicken coop was gone and there were no signs of gnomes anywhere.

"This is not what I expected." Harry remarked with awe.

Lily grasped his wrist and nodded towards two people who were moving toward them. People who Harry recognized, though they did looked different.

Mrs. Weasley was smiling warmly, just as Harry remembered. She looked much better than the woman Harry remembered. More fit, and younger somehow.

Mister Weasley also looked younger, though he was red hair was grayer, he was balder, and his paunch was a bit more noticeable.

"Welcome." Mrs. Weasley said reaching out to take Lily's hand. "We're so happy to have you both."

"Dumbledore explained everything to us last night." Arthur said with a jovial smile. "We've told the children that you are an old friend who's just returned to England and has begun work with me at the Ministry. Only Molly and I know the truth."

"It's a bit odd to be honest." Molly interjected.

"Yes, we've known Albus a long time, and he's always played things very close to the chest.' Arthur stated. "It's as if he's finally decided secrets aren't always good. He told us that he wanted us to make an informed choice on whether to have you here as he thought you might meet someone who might remind you of horrible things in your world and would… react."

"You won't have to worry, sir." Harry started.

"Arthur, please." Arthur smiled.

"There are only two reasons for me to fight. If provoked, or if someone I care about is in danger of getting hurt. While people may look familiar, I know they aren't the people I know. I'm reminded of it everyday." Harry said with a slight glance to lily. Arthur and Molly looked at each other and Harry noted the brief look of sympathy that passed between them.

"Thank you." Lily said politely and Harry nodded, as he was finding it a bit hard to swallow at the moment. The Weasleys had been terribly kind to him over the years, though in the last few years as he and Ginny had matured, Mrs. Weasley had been less accommodating in allowing he and her daughter to spend time unsupervised. Apparently, she saw what Harry and Ginny were only starting to realize for themselves.

"I must confess we are extremely curious." Arthur said cocking his head slightly as he looked at Harry. "Albus told us that you came from a world similar to ours. I wonder if you might tell us what we were like there. I find the whole business rather fascinating.

At once Harry began to smile. The Arthur Weasley he knew was also a very inquisitive man, though that Arthur was much more into how Muggles managed to get along with out magic and was impressed by their inventiveness.

"Arthur, I already told you that we would not be interrogating the young man." Molly Weasley spoke sternly, and gave her husband a withering look. "You heard Albus, he needs help, and today he's going to be allowed to relax and spend time with people his own age. And we will be thankful for all the help he giving Albus in ending the war."

Lily wanted to correct Molly, but felt it might be better to let them believe Harry was doing whatever Albus had told them. Harry needed this, and if she were honest, she needed this. Human contact.

"Now come along." Molly said taking Harry by the arm, and patting his hand warmly. "There's plenty to eat and drink. Do you enjoy quidditch? Oh my, do they even have quidditch in your world? Oh never mind. The kids are all out in the orchard playing the game. I'll get Bill to take you down after you get some food. You look like it's been a while since you had a proper meal."

Lily had to smile at Molly's mothering. From what Harry had told her the night before, this Molly Weasley was behaving very close to what Harry knew. They walked up the hill and Harry saw in the garden was a long table laden with platters of sandwiches and crisps and small cakes. There was another table that had more than a few gifts for the birthday girl.

Molly sat her two new guests down, and filled plates for them with food. Arthur gave them each a cold butterbeer, before he sat across from Harry. Molly went into the house to fetch more food, though Harry couldn't see a need for it.

"I'm curious." Arthur said, as he settled himself and opened his own butterbeer, saluting Harry with the bottle before taking a drink.

"Dumbledore mentioned that you won the war in your world but at great cost." Arthur began, looking rather nervous. "In your world… did my family… did we…"

"Sir… Arthur." Harry said, holding up his hand. "What happened in my world isn't a premonition of what could happen in this world, and knowing whether or not your family's dopplegangers lived isn't going to affect you in this world."

"You're right." Arthur nodded, and gave the teen an apologetic smile. "Will you accept my apology?"

"You have nothing to apologize for Arthur." Harry said. "Curiosity isn't a sin."

"Dad!"

Arthur turned as a teenaged boy came running over.

"What is it Ron?" Arthur asked.

"Fred and Georg need your help. They were trying to impress the girls, and … well; you'd better come see for yourself." Ron said, glancing around worriedly.

"Alright." Arthur sighed heavily. "Ron, this is Harry. Introduce him to your friends, won't you?"

Arthur quickly made his way toward where Ron had just come from leaving Harry in the younger redhead's company.

"Hey, Ron Weasley, how are you?" Ron said offering a hand.

"Harry." Harry said, taking the hand and shaking it while observing Ron and making note of how self assured this Ron seemed to be. He was just as tall and lanky as the young man he'd known. He seemed much friendlier, and Harry couldn't help but wonder what this Ron's outlook regarding Slytherins was like.

"Dad mentioned he'd invited a friend from work. Hi I'm Ron." The young redhead man said to Lily, shaking her hand.

"It's nice to meet you Ron." Lily smiled. "I'm Lily."

"You play quidditch?" Ron asked Harry who nodded, causing Ron to smile brighter.

"Good, we could use an extra man." Ron said waving for Harry to follow him.

The two boys passed through the tree line and into a large clearing with two makeshift Quidditch hoops set up, one at each end of the clearing. There was a bunch of teenagers grouped around the closest hoop talking and laughing.

"Come on." Ron smiled.

They approached the group who were currently arguing over something, but they stopped when Ron and the newcomer got close.

"Hey everyone, this is Harry." Ron said patting Harry's shoulder. "Harry this is Hannah Abbott, Dean Thomas, my girlfriend Luna Lovegood, Terry Boot, Susan Bones, Colin Creevey, Dennis Creevey, Megan Jones, Ginny my sister, and Katie Bell. My brothers Fred and George are over there, and will probably join us in a minute."

Harry couldn't stop looking at her. Ginny was pretty, but not in the way his Ginny had been. She was slimmer, more boyish, with shorter hair. She smiled at him and Harry felt a pang in his heart. It was then that he realized that he had been hoping to see the girl he knew. He wanted to be with her, and had somehow convinced himself that he was going to see her again. However, this girl wasn't his Ginny. She looked almost nothing like the beautiful girl he'd been in love with.

Thankfully, Ron was able to distract Harry by dividing everyone into teams and getting a pick up game started.

* * *

Several hours later found Harry sitting in between Susan Bones who was far more attractive then the girl he'd known, and a very forward and flirtatious Hannah Abbott. Ginny was sitting across from him in the arms of Terry Boot. They were all sitting in a circle on the ground, brooms leaning on a nearby tree.

It was very strange for Harry to be sitting among people he had known, and yet know nothing about them. The twins were the closest to what Harry had known. They were very funny and clever. They even finished each other's sentences, which made Harry wonder if that was a twin thing across the dimensional universe. But the biggest difference in this world was that they were working with the Ministry to develop and provide defensive equipment to the Aurors.

Harry hadn't really known Terry Boot, or Megan Jones, so he couldn't really compare them to their doppelgangers. Though he found these two were amiable.

Dean Thomas was much more verbose and crude then the boy Harry had shared a dorm room with. In fact, he reminded Harry immensely of a real jerk named Cormac McClaggen.

Luna was extremely different. While she still had a somewhat wide-eyed dreamy look, she was nothing like the barmy girl who talked about odd creatures all the time. She was soft spoken, but what she said carried weight. She was extremely wise and observant, and Harry couldn't help but feel like she could read his mind.

Unfortunately, the Creevey brothers had had to leave early and Harry didn't get a chance to interact with them too much. Katie Bell was much prettier than the girl he'd shared a locker room with and bustier as well. Her hair wasn't the straight sleek mane that Harry recognized, but curly and bouncy. She was rather boisterous, and Harry couldn't help but believe that Katie, not unlike Hannah, was flirting with him.

"…And that's when Mum found them!" Ginny was laughing at the story she was telling. Everyone was holding their sides and even Harry found himself chuckling at the story of Charlie getting caught with a girlfriend not to far from where they sat. "I swear I thought she would shatter the windows with how loud she was screaming. Ron and I went out to see what was happening and she actually banished us back into the house."

"I broke my arm, remember?" Ron reminded his sister who nodded and cackled loudly. Harry cringed slightly at the sound.

"Hey you lot." Fred said as he and George approached. They started handing out bottles of butterbeer.

"Thought you lot could use a refill." George smiled.

Susan, your mom and Aunt just arrived. They said not to worry though they want to visit with mum and dad for a bit."

"Susan, is your Aunt Amelia Bones?" Harry asked. Susan nodded.

"But don't let that intimidate you." Susan smiled.

"Yeah she's not nearly as ruthless as the paper makes her out to be." Hannah smirked.

"Stop it." Susan rolled her eyes. "She's got a tough job running the magical world. And she's under a lot of scrutiny right now with everything that's happening."

"Whoa." Ginny said, sitting up straight. Did you guys feel that?"

Fred and George were turning now, both looking concerned. Ron was getting to her his feet now and Harry noted that he looked a bit troubled as well.

"What's going on?" Susan asked as she and the others all got to their feet. Fred and George had made their way to the path that led to the house followed by Ron; the other began moving that way as well when Ron turned to the others.

"We need to get out of here now!"

Harry saw a large tongue of flame rise into the air, and heard the screams and shouts from the house where the adults had been visiting. There was a second ball of fire that hit the ground near the house and Harry pushed past Fred and George, drawing his wand as he caught sight of a line of black robed figures approaching.

"GO!" Harry shouted. "Now!"

"Are those Death Eaters?" Megan asked frantically, clutching Ginny's hand.

RUN!" Harry shouted as he sprinted forward. The Death Eaters were focused on the house and the adults who had taken shelter inside. Harry could see that someone was clearly fighting the fire inside

"Charlie! Nymphadora! Find the kids and get them somewhere safe!" Arthur Weasley shouted as he and his old friend Sam Perkins flipped the table to use as cover. "Get them out of here now!"

Charlie Weasley And his girlfriend Nymphadora Tonks Raced towards the orchard with their wands in hand. Mrs. Weasley and Lily, along with Amelia Bones and her sister in law Rebecca all got out of the house and Amelia conjured several large rocks for them to take cover behind. Rebecca sent a patronus off to get help from the Aurors.

Harry sprinted past Charlie and Nymphadora. Charlie called after him, but Harry ignored him. As Harry drew near he got a look at the adults, and noted how Lily seemed to be cowering behind one of the overturned tables. The young wizard remembered Lily telling him that she hadn't fought since the night she had lost everything.

"You need to get out of here." Harry said as he slid down beside her. he chance a glance over the table and saw a line of Death Eaters approaching. He found it very odd that they were approaching like an ancient roman phalanx.

"I'm not going anywhere without you." Lily replied firmly. "You're my responsibility."

"Harry, you need to go with the others." Mrs. Weasley shouted, looking fearful.

"I'm not going anywhere." Harry said forcefully.

"Harry this isn't your war." Lily said, grabbing the front of his shirt. "You don't owe us anything."

"It isn't in my nature to run away." Harry replied.

"She wouldn't want you to do this." Lily tried. "She'd want you to live your life."

"No offense." Harry said looking hard into Lily's eyes. "But you didn't know her. She'd be ashamed if I didn't do all I could to help."

"Surrender yourself Minister!" Came a loud screeching cry. "Surrender and on my honor, no one will die tonight."

"Oh no…" Mrs. Weasley said, her face becoming deathly pale. "Oh dear gods save us."

"What?" Harry asked, as he chanced a second glance over the garden wall.

"It's the Blade of Voldemort." Lily said, her eyes wide with fear.

"Minister Bones?" Bellatrix Black called out again.

The Death Eaters were lined up, wands at the ready, and Harry was again reminded of ancient armies assembled for battle. Someone was pacing back and forth in front of the twenty or so black robed and masked soldiers. Unlike the others, she was not wearing a mask or hood, and Harry was struck by how attractive the woman was. a far cry from the Bellatrix LeStrange he had fought in his world. She was quite a beautiful woman, with long wavy black hair and dark piercing eyes. She wore a black bodice that enhanced her womanly curves.

Harry then took in the lay of the land, as an idea began to form in his mind. he was then distracted by Mrs. Weasley shouting angrily. Harry turned and saw Fred and George peaking around the corner of the house.

"What are you two doing here? Get back there with your brothers and sister!" The matriarch snapped.

"We're not…" Fred began but Mrs. Weasley started to cut her son off when Bellatrix once again demanded for the Minister of Magic to give herself up.

"I have a plan." Harry said to Lily.

Lily gave him an inquisitive expression as the young man turned to the twins.

"You two!" Harry shouted at Fred and George. "You're with me."

The twins looked very pleased and Mrs Wealey looked ready to say something in argument for any of them doing anything stupid, but Harry cut across her and called to Minister Bones.

"Minister. In ten seconds, draw their fire. keep them focused on you as long as you can." Harry said, scrambling low towards Fred and George, and leading them around the house, and leaving the others to do as he had told them.

"Who the hell does he think he is giving me orders?" Amelia snapped, but lily turned and got ready to do as Harry had ordered.

"Someone who we should listen to." Lily said.

Harry and the twins rushed into the woods on the side of the house and stopped.

"Disillusion yourselves, and grab the hand of the person in front of you. I'll lead you. Stay low and keep up." Harry said, tapping his head with his wand to disillusion himself. The others followed his lead, and Harry felt Fred grasp his hand. He led them a bit deeper into the woods as quietly as they could.

"We're going behind them?" One of the twins asked in a hurried whisper.

"We're going to flank them and wipe them out." Harry said firmly.

"Wait, what?" The twins said in unison.

"We're going to flank them and kill them." Harry said again, guiding the twins further towards the Death Eaters who were now firing volley after volley of spells trying to kill those Harry and the others had left.

"Don't use stunners, or anything else they can recover from. Hit hard, hit fast and leave no one standing, or you could be the next one they kill, understand?" Harry asked, leaving no room for argument as he fired the first severing hex.

The Death Eaters had not even considered anyone coming behind them. There was confusion when the first three fell dead, and it gave Amelia Bones and the others an opening to fight back. Voldemort's forces found themselves in a cross fire, something Harry guessed that they had never experienced.

Harry urged the twins on to eliminate everyone except Bellatrix. The twins proved quite effective with their spell work. Though they didn't actually kill anyone, the twins did manage to make sure that none of their targets would be able to continue fighting.

Harry took out four more cleanly with piercing hexes to their chests. Thanks to their camouflage and the night, the Death Eaters couldn't see clearly who or where they were being attacked from. Bellatrix began shrieking with rage as more of her fellows fell. She began firing wildly into the trees, but her rage and her inability to see anyone made her spells rather ineffective.

As the Death Eater ranks thinned, Harry focused all his attention on Bellatrix. He decided quickly that she needed to remain alive as she was likely the best source of information on this world's Voldemort, provided this world had Veritaserum. Harry launched into an impressive array of spells all meant to incapacitate the so-called Blade of Voldemort.

Bellatrix was too confused by everything. Though she dodge and danced, Harry's speed and ferocity were too much for her.

Just as Harry bound the leader of the Death Eaters in tight cords, there were several pops of apparition, and Amelia Bones was calling out to Rufus Scrimgeour who was leading a team of Aurors.

"Help them get that fire out!" Rufus ordered as he drew closer. Several Aurors went to assist the Weasleys with their house. The head of the Aurors turned to the minister of magic with an expression of concern.

"Amelia, are you alright?" Rufus asked.

"It's Bellatrix Black!" One of the Aurors called with shock.

"You caught Bellatrix Black?" Rufus asked with awe.

"Not me." Amelia admitted turning to Harry who was next to Lily who was looking him over with concern. Harry just smiled at the woman and shook his head. "That young man led two others and snuck up behind the Death Eaters. They didn't even see it coming."

"He what?" Rufus looked appalled. "That's so dishonarable."

"Be that as it may, he saved us." Amelia stated flatly. She led Rufus over to Harry and Lily. "I'd like to thank you young man. Though you took a serious risk with our lives."

"Something had to be done." Harry said flatly, his eyes distant. Lily placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Though I do question your methods." Amelia said with a look that told Harry she was displeased.

"My methods?" Harry asked incredulously. "If I hadn't gotten behind them, they would have killed you all.

"Harry," Lily said softly. "It's considered the height of dishonor to attack someone from behind."

"You're joking right?" Harry looked between the three adults. None of them were laughing, and Harry's smile fell away. "You're serious? well no wonder you're losing this war."

"Excuse me, but what the hell do you know of it?" Rufus snapped bitterly. Amelia held up her hand to prevent him from saying anything further.

"Young man, we are grateful to you. Bellatrix Black is not know for her mercy, and its clear that her master has finally decided to eliminate me once and for all." Amelia said. "But thanks to you… we now have one of his most trusted and loyal lieutenants. Thank you."

There came several more pops of apparition and they all turned and looked as more Aurors crested the hill along with Albus Dumbledore, who looked very worried.

"Albus, I don't remember calling for you." Amelia said as Kingsley Shacklebolt levitated Bellatrix into the air. "Take her to holding, triple guards. Use the dampening shackles."

"You've captured the Blade of Voldemort?" Dumbledore stared in awe as Kingsley and John Dawlish along with several other Aurors gathered together with their prisoners in preparation to apparate away.

"Actually, this young man managed that." Amelia said, eyeing Harry critically. "And I was just about to ask him why he brought it on himself to do something so dangerous and foolish."

Dumbledore furrowed his brow and shook his head slowly. "Perhaps Amelia, I could answer that, and explain a bit more, though I would prefer if we had that conversation privately."


	7. Chapter 7

7.

Hermione Granger sat at her writing desk in her bedroom staring blankly at the book before her. She ran her fingers through her chestnut brown tresses and sighed. She still felt strange. For nearly three weeks, she hadn't felt herself. It was as if some part of her was crying out, and she couldn't figure out what she wanted, or needed or what it was that was wrong. Earlier that very evening, she'd had a sudden feeling of panic in her chest. She couldn't figure out why, as she was safe at home and all her homework was finished. The longer this strange feeling continued, the more she was convinced that she was slowly dying of something. Alternatively, she had been until tonight.

Two days before her vacation in France had ended; she had managed to get into the magical shopping district, and had bought a few books on magical ailments, specifically regarding anything with the brain. While she'd been there, she had found a book that she had first thought was a wizarding romance novel. What she had discovered was that _The Power of Love_ was actually a very intriguing look at many of the myths surrounding the emotion of love.

It had been a fun read for the most part. Hermione had found the chapter on how strong emotions can help or hinder some types of magic. Concerning the Unforgivables, Negative emotions were key to their success, which was why the Killing curse was not used to ease the suffering of terminal patients. Healers generally didn't hate their patients. On the other hand, the Patronus charm was powered but extremely powerful positive emotions. The more positive the memory one used, the stronger the Patronus could be.

Hermione had of course already known this, but it had still been interesting to get another perspective on the matter. However, this wasn't why she was staring into space at the moment. She had come across a chapter regarding the myth behind soul mates.

It was a fascinating chapter really, in that the author clearly didn't believe in the concept. However, they still presented the information as though it could be quantified. Theoretically, there was someone for everyone. A perfect match if you will. Someone who fit to another like a puzzle piece and if one managed to find and connect to that other, it could be like a fairytale romance with a happily ever after. The problem was that it was extremely difficult to connect, or even find that person. The Author even showed that one could find their soul mate, and hate them on sight.

The book went on to show how truly big the world was and the statistical improbability of finding one's other half. Hermione had of course agreed one hundred percent with this, and just like the author, thought the concept of a soul mate was just ridiculous. At least until she got to the part where the author had spoken to people who claimed that they had in fact found their other half.

Hermione had scoffed at most of it, but then she read about a woman who claimed that when she had turned twelve, she began feeling as if she were constantly in the wrong place. This young woman had told the author about all these things she had felt, and how she had thought that she was falling prey to a disease. Everything that Hermione herself had been feeling recently.

In the end, this woman, at the age of nineteen, had traveled from her home in Bulgaria to America, and followed her heart as it were, and met the man she had eventually married.

Hermione had found it a rather fanciful tale to be sure, but she couldn't discount that she had experienced, for lack of a better word, a longing to be somewhere that she wasn't. A sort of pull, though she had no idea where or why. She felt off balance a lot, as if the entire world had shifted underneath her. In addition, while she still didn't believe in soul mates, she couldn't deny the similarities.

She had never been much of a dreamer. She had never been very imaginative as a child. Yet, as she sat at her desk, she couldn't help but allow her mind to wander and picture herself in a fancy dress and high-heeled shoes meeting a handsome man who treated her like a princess. But it wasn't real, and it likely never would be. Things like that didn't happen to girls like Hermione Granger. And they never would.

Hermione pushed all of those fanciful thoughts out of her head, and shut the book, setting it aside. There was only three weeks left until the start of her final year at Hogwarts, and she really wanted to get a jumpstart on the curriculum. She couldn't wait to get to Diagon alley to get her new books and equipment and start reading up on the new spells and theories. Picking up her old Runes textbook, Hermione began to read and revise to keep her mind sharp. Though just before she put all her focus onto the topic, she thought for one moment, that maybe this year, she would try to get a boyfriend… so long as it wasn't to distracting to her studies.

* * *

"You knew." Lily snarled rushing forward to poke Albus Dumbledore in the chest with her finger. Dumbledore, who had just stepped out of The Minister's office followed by Amelia Bones, recoiled under Lily's shouts and nearly knocked the Minister for Magic on her posterior.

"You knew the Death Eaters were going to attack the Weasleys tonight, and that's why you thought it would be a good place for Harry to meet people his own age. You were so insistent that Harry and I go to that birthday party. So many kids out in the world that we could have arranged for him to meet and you suggested the Weasleys. You knew they were going to be there! You knew it you lying, scheming bastard! You knew they were coming, and you sent us there so Harry would fight them!"

"Is that true?" Harry asked solemnly. We were standing against the wall with his arms folded across his chest. He looked at Dumbledore, who found the young man's stare startling.

Dumbledore sighed under the weight of Lily's glare and Harry's disappointed tone.

"Yes." Dumbledore nodded grimly. "I was informed that an attack might take place, and I confess that I was more than a little curious after seeing how well Mister Potter handled himself against Sirius to see how he would fare against a real enemy."

"I knew it!" Lily shouted. "I can't believe this. No, wait. I can! And here I was beginning to think that you had actually changed. But you're just as conniving and manipulative as ever!"

"You lied to me." Harry said looking thoroughly disappointed. His eyes were dark, and Dumbledore reeled at the raw power he saw shining in them. "You looked me in the eye and told me that you didn't want me to fight your war for you. Why?"

"Harry," Dumbledore began motioning to make his point. "This war is truly destroying us, and I am sick of not being able to prevent people from being killed by this mad man and his insane followers. When we brought you into this world, I focused all my heart on a truly gifted warrior. I've seen your memories and I know how powerful you are. We desperately need your help to end this war."

"Though I disagree with Albus on a great many things," Amelia chimed in, leaning against her secretary's desk. "I agree with him on this point. Mister Potter, we're right on the brink here."

The Minister took a breath, let it out in a rush, and then looked pleadingly at Harry. "One of my jobs is to inspire confidence in our people. To tell them that everything will be all right. However, to be perfectly frank with you, it won't be long before Voldemort takes over this country. What you did tonight was nothing short of amazing. Albus explained to me that in your world wars are fought quite differently, and that your society doesn't hold honor in battle to the same level that we do. Perhaps it is for that reason that you could turn the tide for us."

"I think Dumbledore has misled you." Harry said grimly. "We do value honor, but in war there is very little of it. It comes down to survival. What I did wasn't that amazing."

"Actually, it was." Lily stated. "The way you took charge and acted without worrying any sort of hesitation or worry… it was really impressive.

Lily glanced at Dumbledore. "Some people would want a big plan before they did anything like that."

"Dumbledore told me that just before he managed to bring you to our world, you had just won your war." Amelia Bones said gently. "With what I witnessed tonight, I can understand why. Our methods of combat haven't change since the fourteen hundreds. What you did was shocking and extremely effective, and I was hoping that you might help us refine our tactics so..."

"NO!" Lily said quickly. "Harry's already fought a war, and he isn't some mercenary! Albus, you promised that he wouldn't be involved and you broke your word. Well I'm not letting it happen again. Harry is now under my protection, and if either of you try to get him involved in our troubles, I will kill you myself. Let's go Harry."

"Lily!" Amelia called out. "Lily, I swear on my life that I won't let him fight. I just want him to teach us how they fought in his world. Please!"

"Lily, I appreciate you wanting to protect me.' Harry said, grabbing lily's shoulder. "But I told you before that I can't just sit by and let people get hurt if I can stop it. It isn't in my nature."

"But I don't want to fight your war for you." he said staring Dumbledore down coldly. "So how about a compromise? You can come to Lily's home with a few of your Aurors, and I'll show them some things that will help you gain the upper hand, and she can keep an eye on me and make sure no one is taking advantage of me."

"That is more than fair." Amelia smiled appreciatively, and Lily looked reluctant, but agreed as well.

"And I'd like to be compensated." Harry added quickly. "Since I don't know how much longer I'm going to be here, I don't wish to be a burden on any one. So I'd like to get paid for consulting, if that's alright."

"I agree." Amelia nodded. "I will make the necessary arrangements."

Lily looked at the young man and remembered how driven he had been to do what he could to help. She was now certain it was in his nature. Not to mention the way he was looking at her, with those big green eyes. What she found hilarious in that moment was that he was acting like a son to her. Finding a compromise so that she would be happy while still be able to do as he pleased. It filled her with a warmth and she felt herself relaxing a bit. She reached out and took his hand, squeezing it and making him smile.

"Alright." She said. "You may come by tomorrow afternoon."

"Thank you." Amelia said with an air of relief. Lily turned to Dumbledore, glaring hard at him.

"I meant it Albus. I don't trust you as far as I could hex you. Until you're ready to send him home, you stay away from him!" She said coldly. Dumbledore gave a single nod and with that, Lily slipped her arm over Harry's shoulders and guided him out of the Ministry.

The Minister looked to the Hogwarts Headmaster critically for a moment.

"Albus, I have never once doubted your integrity or your allegiance to being a good and honorable man. I also know that you've tended in the past to keep secrets in order to protect people, and it's never worked out. People have died because you kept secrets." Amelia said with frustration.

"It's been made very apparent to me over the last few weeks." Dumbledore sighed.

"So why did you really do it? Why rip that poor kid from his world if not to fight this war?" Amelia asked.

"Because without that young man, we are doomed." Dumbledore sighed, running a hand over his face in a show of weariness.

"What are you talking about?" Amelia asked completely bewildered by the old man's response.

"Amelia what I'm about to tell you must never leave this room. It is critical that it remains secret… Seventeen years ago, there was a prophecy…"

Two days later found Sirius and Remus sitting on the front porch of Lily's home as their host shared all that had happened at the Weasley home during the birthday celebration for Ginny.

"He knew all along. It was some sort of test for Harry." Lily concluded bitterly.

"I guess we should have all seen this coming." Remus shook his head with disappointment.

"Aye." Sirius agreed. "The man is at the end of his rope. He holds himself responsible for how things have turned out because he didn't want any of us to get our precious souls dirty, but he keeps forgetting there is a difference between killing, and murder."

"He also keeps forgetting the difference between lies and truth." Lily snorted.

"Something he's always struggled with." Sirius nodded.

"What I can't figure out is why he would allow you both to go there?" Remus asked, scratching his chin. "Harry I get. After his show with Sirius, he'd likely want to see how well Harry handled himself in real combat. Get the kid back in the fighting spirit."

"Which is stupid, because the kid isn't even a month away from his own war?" Sirius remarked. Remus nodded and then turned to Lily.

"But why would Dumbledore send you there?" Remus asked. "It doesn't make any sense. No offense Lily, but you were never that good a duelist."

"That isn't fair." Sirius stated. "We never really gave her a chance. We always went off and left her behind."

"And don't think I've forgiven you for it. I could have fought as well as any of you." Lily scowled. "Maybe he was trying to appeal to my sense of right and wrong by forcing me to see how bad things have gotten. But I have to admit… I …" Lily looked down shamefully.

"You froze." Sirius said understandingly. Lily nodded.

"I would have cowered behind that table until the Death Eaters killed me if Harry hadn't rallied us. "Lily sighed. "I wish you could have seen him. It was the first time he acted as if he wanted to live."

"How do you mean?" Remus wondered.

"We've talked a lot and I know that he was preparing for life after his war ended." Lily began. "He could see the end in sight, and from what he's told me, he thought that he'd get to live the life he wanted. He was going to take a chance with his Ginny, he was going to try and play quidditch professionally, or work with niflers or something with not chance of getting hurt."

"We know this, he's told us…" Sirius started.

"I know. " Lily said holding up a hand to stop him from speaking. "And we know that when we pulled him into our world, he was truly thinking about killing himself. He still thinks about it. But that night when he took off with the Weasley twins, there was life in his eyes."

They fell silent for a moment as it began to sink in.

"I am terrified that he might choose to keep fighting in the hopes that someone will kill him." Lily said, her eyes misting. "You should have seen him yesterday with Amelia Bones, going over maneuvers, and writing out ways to train Aurors to fight better. He was so… energized, and it was so scary for me."

"Lily, if Harry really wants to die, then there is nothing you, or any of us can do to stop him from finding a way to do it." Remus said heavily.

"I don't think he does." Sirius said finishing off his butterbeer. "He had the perfect moment to do it. He could have run headlong right into Bellatrix's knife, and she would have granted his wish right then and there. But he not only fought, but he led others to help him. He's hurting, he's lonely, but he doesn't want to die. The problem now is that he's shown how good he is, and I don't think Dumbledore is going to let this rest. He was desperate enough to bring the kid into our world. He isn't going to just let you keep him in peace until he gets what we need to send him home."

"He'll probably keep finding difficulties in redoing the ritual or whatever excuse he can come up with just to keep Harry here." Remus added.

"Lily, what if Harry wants to fight?" Sirius asked.

"What?" Lily looked aghast.

"You said that he told you that he thought he needed to act. That he couldn't live with himself if he felt he could help, right?" Sirius asked.

"Essentially, yes." Lily replied.

"Would you stop him from fighting if he wanted to? I mean, if there wasn't this doubt that he might want to end his life or whatever. If he truly wanted to fight and help us end the war. Would you try and stop him?"

Lily could only stare at Sirius as she tried to figure out if she would oppose Harry if he chose to fight in the war because he really wanted to make a difference. He wasn't her child, and she couldn't stop him from doing whatever he wanted to. Yet she couldn't help feel protective of him, and she knew that she would try to talk him out of it, but would she do whatever it took to prevent him from fighting a war, which he had no investment in?

"I don't know." Was all she could say.

"Hey, where is Harry anyway?" Remus asked suddenly.

* * *

Harry had no idea how he'd found himself here. He couldn't remember consciously deciding to come here. All he had wanted was some time to himself really. He had told Lily that he just needed time to think. She had been unreceptive to the idea of Harry wandering around London on his own. Then he reminded her that only a handful of people knew he was even in this world, and even fewer than that knew who he actually was.

Harry really liked Lily. He had often wondered what his mother would have been like, and now felt as if he was getting a chance to know. He knew that Lily wasn't his mother, but she clearly cared about him, and he in turned had come to respect and care for her. How could he not after she stood up to Dumbledore, and placed him under her protection.

Dumbledore was another issue. Harry felt betrayed by the Headmaster, and he knew it was because this Dumbledore was playing off Harry's respect and loyalty for his own Headmaster, the man who had trained him and guided him and eventually gave his life to free Harry. It was cruel, and Harry knew he was going to have to be more cautious around this version. It was going to be difficult, but Harry did not want to be manipulated in fighting for people he didn't respect, or tricked into fighting at all. If he chose to stand against evil in this world, it would be his choice.

Harry paused a moment and glanced into the apothecary. Diagon Alley was just as exciting and enjoyable as it had been in his world. He could see Gringotts touring over everything, and all the different witches and wizards going about their shopping. His favorite store, Quality Quidditch Supplies was there and loaded with equipment that he would have loved to snatch up.

He'd stopped in Magical Menagerie and looked at some of the animals in there. He'd played with a very cute grey and black tabby cat, and enjoyed watching the pygmy puffs frolic in their cage. He'd liked the owls, but had to leave when he saw a snowy owl that had reminded him of his own beloved pet Hedwig.

Several times as he wandered through the shopping district, Harry had to stop when he saw familiar faces. People he'd known, or sat in a classroom with. And every time he wanted to say hello, he had to remind himself that they didn't know him. Harry Potter, in this world, hadn't existed for very long.

And it was with that overwhelming sense of loneliness that he entered Flourish and Blott's and saw her.

Harry had known her, had been friendly with her. This version of her was rather striking. Her hair was not a frightful unmanageable mess of curls, but gentle chestnut waves. Her figure was slender, though she appeared a bit more buxom than her counterpart. She wore jeans that fit her well, and a light top, beige maybe. Harry noted that her fingernails looked nice, like she hadn't chewed on them when she was working out a problem, or nervous. Also, Harry noted that she was wearing makeup. Not a lot, but enough that he noticed.

She was reaching up on the shelf for a book, a familiar gesture for this girl, but it was a welcome one.

"Do you need help?" Harry asked, almost unaware until he spoke that he'd walked over to her.

She glanced at him and shook her head, still reaching and only just touching the tome she wanted. Harry reached up and was just able to get the book for her. The girl frowned slightly, but thanked him politely.

"Sorry, I know you would have managed just fine on your own."

Hermione Granger looked at him for a moment with a soft scowl that began to melt as she continued to gaze at him.

"Do I know you?" She asked curiously. Harry had the briefest moment of wanting to tell her that they did know each other, but once again, he knew that she was not the girl he'd known.

"I don't think so." He said a bit sadly. She cocked her head inquisitively at that and he quickly shook it off, offering his hand. "Harry Potter."

"Hermione Granger." She replied politely.

"Are you opening a library?" Harry asked, gesturing to the basket of book Hermione had by her feet.

"My parents think so." Hermione shrugged. "I've always enjoyed books though. Most people don't fancy them but I can't help it. So much knowledge for anyone to take if they simply…"

"Open the cover." Harry said with her, causing her eyes to widen, and a lovely smile to appear on her face. Harry was taken with how beautiful it made her look. Harry noted too how pretty her teeth were. The Hermione he'd known had had very large front teeth, and often didn't smile out of embarrassment of them.

"I had a friend who used to say the same thing." Harry said by way of explanation. "So are you heading to Hogwarts then?"

"Yes." Hermione nodded. "Seventh year. A bit scary really. After this it's into the real world."

"Don't know what you're worried about. "Harry smiled gently. "You've probably got your career path all mapped out and everything.

Hermione shook her head slowly.

"Actually, I don't have a clue what I want to do. And I promised my parents that I would go to university when I graduated Hogwarts. They want me to become a doctor or a solicitor or something like that. Stay in the Muggle world where they understand things. But, I don't know if that's where I want to end up."

"You're muggleborn then?" Harry asked, and Hermione's expression darkened.

"Sorry." Harry said quickly. "I'm not against that at all. I'm half-blood, and raised by muggles. I'm not a blood purist or anything."

Hermione's expression softened and she apologized.

"It's alright." She said and then looked at him. "Will you be going to Hogwarts this year?"

"I may be around." Harry said honestly. "I don't really know yet."

"How could you not know? The term starts in just a few weeks." She pointed out.

"Uh, yeah." Harry ran his fingers through his hair and then shoved his hands in his pockets. Dumbledore had urged the need for secrecy in his being in this world, even though the old codger had been telling everyone lately about who he was and where he was from. Yet, Harry didn't think that it was a great idea advertising it.

"I'm visiting at the moment." He replied. "A relation of my mother's and I don't know how long I'll be here yet. I'm helping some people out with something and then when it's done… I don't know yet."

"Well I don't know if you could be any vaguer." Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, sorry." He chuckled. "Hey, you wouldn't by any chance want to go with me to Florean Fortescue's for an ice cream sundae, would you? It's just that, well you're the first person my age that I've met that I've been able to talk to in a while."

"Florean Fortescue is making ice cream sundaes? I thought he only did sandwiches. Did he expand?" Hermione looked over her shoulder and out the window, though the sandwich maker was a few stores down the alley.

"Oh." Harry said quickly, trying to cover his error. "I just ate there, and it was stuck in my mind. Is there a place to get ice cream though?"

"Well, Fellini's of course." Hermione's smile brightened a bit. "It's just up the alley."

"Perfect." Harry smiled as he reached down and picked up Hermione's basket of books, which thankfully had a feather light charm on it. "So, let's finish your shopping, and go get some."

"That actually sounds nice." Hermione nodded. "Alright."

She couldn't explain it. Not at all. but the moment she looked into his stunning green eyes, the feeling that had been plaguing her for the last few weeks disappeared, and she felt completely normal again. Well, except for the butterflies flittering about in her abdomen. He was taller than she was, with slightly unruly jet-black hair, and a strange scar on his forehead that looked like a lightning bolt. He was very polite, and very much the gentleman. He carried her basket and waited patiently while she finished her shopping in the bookstore, and didn't bat an eye when she stopped into two other stores before they went into Fellini's. He bought them both sundaes and they had say outside eating and talking.

Harry kept the conversation focused mainly on her. He asked about Hogwarts, and what house she was in and looked surprised when she told him Gryffindor, as if he'd expected a different answer. In fact, he had that look of surprise more than a few times as she spoke. When she had revealed that her parents were both pediatric doctors, or that they had never been truly happy to find that their only daughter was a witch. They hadn't been ashamed, but just not super supportive.

"I suppose it could have been worse." Harry had said with a small smile. "My Aunt was downright furious when I got my letter to school. She was sure she could squash the 'freakishness' out of me.

"That sounds horrible." Hermione looked appalled. "What happened?"

"My Aunt made my Uncle drive the whole family around trying to find a place to hide because the letters kept coming. In the end Hag, er… someone had to come and get me and explain it all to me. It answered a lot of question I had about things that had happened to me growing up."

"Accidental magic?" Hermione asked and Harry nodded.

"Yeah, I uh… I shrank a dollhouse my mother had gotten me for my birthday. I hated it and she kept urging me to play with it, and all these horrible dolls. She wanted me to be like a normal girl, and kept telling me if I played with them, I'd make more friends at school. To make matters worse, she put the stupid thing in front of my bookshelf so I couldn't get to them. Then one day, it shrank. She was beside herself trying to understand how it happened." Hermione laughed, and Harry was struck by how musical it was.

"My friend Padma, she made all the hairs off the family cat disappear. And my other friend Luna, she made all of her mother's newspapers disappear. They had to reprint it all." Hermione recounted and Harry laughed with her.

"Oh wow." Hermione said looking at her watch, her chocolate brown eyes going wide. "We've been here for four hours. I really need to get home, my parents are going to be really worried."

"Oh, yeah, I didn't mean to keep you…" Harry started to apologize but Hermione waved her hand quickly.

"No, I had a really nice time. Honestly." She said, and then tilted her head as she looked at him. "Thank you."

"I really should be thanking you." Harry replied as he got up, and helped her to her feet, which had the effect of making her blush slightly. "To be honest, I've been going through a rough spot lately, and I haven't thought about it at all since I've been with you."

"Well then I'm glad I could distract you." She said, sweeping a lock of chestnut brown hair behind her left ear.

"I know this might be a bit forward, but… could I maybe see you again? Soon?" He asked nervously.

The smile she gave him could have lit all of London. She quickly rummaged in her handbag, pulled a slip of paper and a biro, wrote down her address, phone number, and then handed it to him.

"I've got just under three weeks left until I go back to Hogwarts." She stated.

"Then I will definitely see you again." Harry smiled and Hermione gave him a little wave before heading up the alley.

Harry watched her go, wondering why he'd spoken to her of all the people he'd seen in the alley that day. What was it about Hermione Granger that had caused him to speak to her? She wasn't the girl he'd known. Far from it, he'd learned after spending four hours with her. This girl was more self-assured, though also a little lacking in confidence. A contradiction to be sure, but there it was.

Yet, he'd been comfortable with her. Almost in the way, he'd been comfortable with Ginny all those years. Hermione was smart, just as the Hermione he'd known was, but this girl didn't lord it over people. She didn't appear to have the drive to be the very best, and hadn't droned on and on about magical theory and arithmantic equations, or whatever runes she found fascinating now. This Hermione was tolerable, and Harry found her warm, witty, and delightful. And she had made him feel okay for the first time in weeks. Since he'd lost everything, Hermione Granger had made him believe that everything would be okay.

"WHAT?" The shout reverberated of the walls and shook the entire hall. The two men who were kneeling fought the urge to run as far away as they could.

"How? How could anyone manage to lay hands upon my most ruthless, my most brutal of warriors?" the shouting continued. "Answer me!"

"We… we do not know Milord." one of the cowering wretches said.

"We've hidden nothing Milord. We've told you everything our source told us." The other added.

"CRUCIO!"

Screams echoed off every wall as the foolish man writhed and squirmed as every single nerve ending within him burned. His cohort kept his eyes glued to the floor and tried to shut out the screams. He was certain he would suffer the same fate in moments but didn't want to provoke his master into torturing him any sooner.

"Do you know where dear Bellatrix is being held?"

Gasps were the only noise emanating from the man who'd been tortured.

"N-no, Milord." the kneeling man stammered. "There has been no word on that. Only that she was taken in chains and magic dampening shackles."

"I want to know where they are keeping my Blade, and I want to know right away. Be gone from my sight, and take that useless pile of shit with you. Go now before I kill you both!"

The kneeling man quickly grabbed his compatriot and dragged him for all he was worth out of the hall leaving his enraged master behind.

Lord Voldemort watched them leave, his red eyes narrowed with contempt. Tall, lean and imposing, Lord Voldemort radiated power. He was hairless with pale alabaster skin. His face had sharp aristocratic features and sharp pointed teeth beneath red stained lips. He could have been mistaken for a vampire, save for his eyes, and his flesh, which in certain light, appeared to resemble snakeskin.

The man that Great Britain feared paced back and forth in his hall, contemplating all he had learned. It had been a very long time since any of his followers had failed him, but he couldn't remember the last time any of them were killed in combat. There had been those annoying assassinations, but Lord Voldemort thought them an annoying annoyance, especially as none of his most feared had been taken yet.

But this was different.

Bellatrix Black was hands down the most cunning and devious Death Eater in his service. But she was more then that to him.

The news of her captured angered him deeply, but it also made him curious. Someone out there had bested his most vicious fighter. There had been no word on how that had happened; only that Bellatrix had been captured and paraded through the Ministry like some kind of prize.

Lord Voldemort clenched his fists and rolled his shoulders. He was supposed to in the Ministry at this moment, but somehow, Amelia Bones still lived. His plans were now on hold until he could find and free Bellatrix. He would need her for the final push.

What made Voldemort so angry was that something different had happened at the Weasleys. Taking Amelia Bones' life should have been simple. He had sent more than enough of his forces to deal with the Minister, and wipe out any one else with her, and somehow, his forces had been defeated and his most loyal follower had been captured.

There came a tentative knock on the door, and Voldemort waved his hand, opening the door from across the hall. There in the doorway stood one of the Dark Lord's most useful assets. Severus Snape.

"Severus, come in." Voldemort spoke, his voice still thick with anger.

Severus Snape was tall, thin and unkempt. His greasy hair hung in his face like black curtains. There were dark circles under his black eyes and his face was drawn and sallow. He walked purposefully and knelt respectfully before his master.

"I have an assignment for you." Voldemort said. "I believe our enemies have become bolder. Perhaps it is because they know they are beaten, or perhaps they feel they can change things, but way I must know how they defeated Bellatrix and take her prisoner. You know what it is I require of you?"

"I do, Milord." Severus said in a thin raspy voice.

"Do not keep me waiting long." Voldemort commanded, and Severus stood and left as swiftly as he could to carry out his master's orders. Severus had proven to be the most effective spy Voldemort had ever had. He had yet to fail and Voldemort knew that when he returned, Severus would have the answer to this annoying quandary. Therefore, he only had to be patient.

Unfortunately, Patience was not the Dark Lord's strongest quality.


	8. Chapter 8

8.

"Thank you for the warning of the attack on the Weasley home. It saved lives." Dumbledore said to his guest who sat heavily in one of the plush chairs. "I imagine the fallout from that night is what brought you here this evening?"

"He's beyond furious." Severus Snape said morosely. "Worse than any before. It's as if he's taking it as a personal affront that someone managed to defeat and capture Bellatrix Black. I have no memory of him appearing so concerned for any of his followers before. Since his return he has shown more favor to a few, but this is… almost protective. He tasked me with learning the identity of whoever is responsible for Bellatrix's capture."

"I anticipated such a move." Dumbledore nodded. "I don't expect he would believe it was simply a lucky coincidence, or that one of the Weasley's managed it."

"He might, but I don't think you want to name any of those poor people as the responsible party. He would wipe the entire bloodline out without mercy." Snape replied knowingly. Dumbledore nodded his confirmation of Snape's assumption.

"How long do you think we can keep him in the dark before he loses patience?" Dumbledore asked.

"Not long." Severus replied. "He's already has spies working to find Bellatrix's location. It won't be long before she is free once again. When that happens he'll probe her mind and get answers that way. He doesn't have much faith that I'll learn anything from you."

"But if you bring him something, it may give us a bit more time before he puts all his effort into freeing her." Dumbledore concluded.

"I don't know, but if he has someone to chase, it would at least distract him some." Severus reasoned.

Dumbledore thought about it for several moments while Severus observed the older man interestedly.

"Then you must tell him that I was responsible." Dumbledore said. "Make him believe that I went to the Weasleys that night in search of Minister Bones as I had come up with a plan to defeat the Dark Lord once and for all. You may even tell him that I inquired whether I could count on you. Perhaps if we can fool him into thinking I believe to have found a way to destroy him, it would distract him, or at the very least, delay his final push."

"That may work." Snape nodded. "You remain the only one he believes powerful enough to be considered a true threat, and it makes sense that you would be there, but attacking from behind? No one would believe you capable of something so dishonorable."

"You can claim I'm becoming so desperate I'm attacking people from behind. He might like another weapon to discredit me after all." Dumbledore chuckled. Snape gave a rare smirk and nodded at that before locking eyes with the old man.

"Is it safe to assume that you won't tell me who is actually responsible for Bellatrix's incarceration?"

"It is." Dumbledore sighed heavily. "One person was wholly responsible for turning the attack on the enemy, but I do not wish for you to be aware of this person's identity, for their safety as well as your own."

Severus nodded his understanding and the Headmaster continued. " If it helps, you may inform Lord Voldemort that you believe that I've become so desperate that I've delved deep into the Dark Arts to counter his war. He might take great pride in the idea that he's forced me to seek answers in what I've sworn to fight against."

"And have you?' Severus asked curiously. Dumbledore gave a weak smile and shook his head.

"I have investigated some options, but thankfully I have not crossed that line, per se." He replied cryptically.

"Ever the riddle weaver." Severus shook his head.

"Do you have anything else to tell me?" Dumbledore asked.

"The mangy mutts will be pleased to know their rodent friend has returned from abroad. It seems his mission was successful and there are now groups developing on the mainland. The Giants remain reluctant, but the packs and the covens are leaning toward his banner. They are all misguided in their belief that he will honor any promises, but their situations are worse than our own vampires and werewolves. He's positive that victory here is only a matter of time, so he's preparing for his next campaign."

"Good." Dumbledore said.

"Good?' Severus asked a little befuddled.

"Yes. He is already distracted. Planning for a new campaign when he has yet to win his current war. Timing is everything Severus. Especially when it comes to war." Dumbledore said pointedly. Severus just shook his head in frustration. Talking with the headmaster always gave him a headache because the man seemed incapable of giving a straight answer.

Severus looked up at the old wizard, hoping for a bit more, but the Dumbledore refused to speak anymore on the topic of war, but instead inquired about how Severus was holding up. Severus explained how things had been better before the failed attack, and that he had managed to find a home of his own at last. This made Dumbledore smile, and the old man expressed his joy that Severus would have a place to call his own when the war was finished. That intrigued Snape even more, but Dumbledore refused to say any more about what he planned. They continued to speak on the insignificant for another hour until Snape decided it was time for him to leave.

"If I learn anything of importance, I shall contact you in the usual way." He said, fitting his cloak around his shoulders.

"Severus, do be careful. I've come to enjoy our chats." Dumbledore smiled. Severus rolled his eyes and went to the fireplace to floo home.

After Severus departed, Dumbledore sat in contemplation for a bit. He would have to push Amelia Bones into allowing him access to their prisoner sooner. Dumbledore had very little faith that they could keep The Blade of Voldemort hidden much longer, and of all the Death Eaters, Dumbledore believed that Bellatrix might be one of the few who might have some idea of just what and where the Horcruxes were. One other advantage of interrogating Bellatrix would be obliviating the memory of Harry from her mind, protecting the boy a little longer.

Dumbledore rose from his seat with the intention of heading to bed. As his joints creaked, the old wizard gave a sigh of acceptance. He knew that his time in this world was coming to an end and he desperately hoped that before he had to leave, he would have contributed to bringing light back into the world.

* * *

Hermione opened the door and slipped inside the house, still smiling. She set her shopping bags down and leaned against the door for a moment.

Hermione?"

"Yes mum." Hermione said, and delved deeper into her home, finding her mother and father in the kitchen, her mother gave her a relieved smile and her father looked rather stern.

"Where have you been, we expected you home three hours ago." Dan Granger said.

"I'm so sorry." Hermione said quickly and earnestly.

"Did you get everything you need for the year?" Her mother said, coming around to embrace her daughter. Hermione gave a nod and her mother gazed at her with a curious expression.

"Are you alright?" Emma Granger asked, holding her daughter by the shoulders.

"I'm fine.' Hermione replied.

"Dan, take a look at your daughter for a moment and tell me if you see something different.

Hermione's father took a long appraising look at his only daughter with the same hard look he'd given her when she'd entered the room, but then Hermione noticed his gaze soften and a small smile began to appear.

"Well I'll be damned." he said. I haven't seen that in a long time." He said cheerily.

"What are you talking about?" Hermione asked

Emma gently reached out and held her daughter's chin, grinning happily.

"We haven't see that particular smile in ages." Dan said, folding his arms.

"What are you talking about?" Hermione pulled away from her mother, trying to scowl but failing. "I smile all the time."

"Not like that, you don't." Dan shook his head. "We haven't seen that smile for a long time."

"And at your age young lady, that begs only one question." Emma added.

"Who is he?" Dan asked, his smile falling at once.

* * *

With a whip-like crack, Harry appeared in front of the gate at the bottom of the path. He looked up and smiled at the small cottage that had become like a home to him in the last few weeks thanks largely to the woman who lived here.

"There he is." Sirius Black smiled as Harry entered the house.

Harry gave the man a nod and a smile as Lily came out of the kitchen with two bowls which she set on the dining table.

"You're just in time." She smiled. "I just finished making dinner. Remus and Sirius are going to join us."

"Where were you today?" Sirius asked as Remus entered with more food. Wolf Animagus looked up and smiled at Harry.

"I ended up in Diagon Alley." Harry said. "I didn't realize how close it was to the start of the school term. I saw a lot of people I recognized shopping for new school things. It was, really strange seeing so many people I knew and not having them recognize me. Knowing that most of them were dead."

Lily came forward and hugged him tightly. Sirius glanced at Remus who clearly felt the same as Sirius. They both sympathized for the boy.

"Did you talk to any of them?" Remus asked Harry paused. He looked up as Lily pulled away.

"In my world, we hadn't been close. I considered her a friend, but we weren't close by any stretch. She was always nice, and she always seemed to appreciate when we talked. I met her doppleganger in Flourish and Blotts. I have no idea why, but I just went up and introduced myself. I can't explain it, but I just felt, well, like I was drawn to her."

Lily actually started to smile and drew Harry to the table. Everyone sat down and they began to eat as Harry continued his tale.

"I took her for ice cream and we just talked. This girl was really nice. Usually I am terrible around girls. Except Ginny, but we knew each other so well, you know. I had that same feeling with Hermione." Harry explained.

"Hermione?" Sirius asked with raised eyebrows.

"I think it's a lovely name." Lily said, giving a very meaningful look at Sirius who cowered under her glare.

"Are you going to see her again?" Remus asked.

"She's got a few weeks before she goes back to Hogwarts." Harry smiled to himself. Then his face became serious and he fidgeted a little.

"What is it Harry?" Lily asked.

"Well, after Hermione left I got to thinking about a lot of stuff. Things that happened in my world, and things happening here. I don't know, but it feels like I've got another shot here. Like a second chance to fix what I couldn't before."

"What do you mean?" Sirius asked, giving a significant look to Lily, who had stiffened.

"Even though he denies it, Dumbledore clearly brought me here to fight in this war." Harry said looking at Lily. Lily must have agreed with Harry's assessment as her mouth thinned in agitation.

"And despite your wish to keep me out of it, eventually I'll be involved." Harry sighed. Remus and Sirius kept giving each other knowing looks, but kept quiet.

"What is it you're saying Harry?" Lily asked, though her tone revealed she already knew.

"I want to find Voldemort's Horcruxes. I want to figure out what they are and where they are, and destroy them. So, I think we're going to have to meet with Dumbledore and find out what he knows. Alternatively, we can go to all the sites that he hid things in my world and check. I know things are different here, but there's enough similar that it's possible that your Voldemort used the same places." Harry said.

"Not a bad idea." Sirius smiled. "Take it out of the old goat's hands."

"He won't have much time to do much anyway with the term starting." Remus added. "It isn't a bad idea."

"Look Lily, I know how you feel about me getting involved, but it's obvious that no one here is willing to do what needs to be done in order to end this war. The other day at the Weasleys… the way the Death Eaters lined up, and how you told me how wizard wars have been fought. It's clear that you needed someone like me to gain the upper hand." Harry remarked.

"What about going to school?" Lily asked.

"Lily?" Sirius gave an exasperated sigh.

"What is so wrong about wanting to keep him safe?" Lily nearly shouted. "And maybe what he needs is to spend more time with people his own age who can help him forget about war. He just lost everyone he ever knewe to save his own world!"

"And now I'm in a position to prevent it happening again. To people I'm coming to care about." Harry said pointedly, and Lily felt her heart stop at his powerful gaze. She felt tears sting her eyes as he reached out and took her hand.

"Lily, you've shown me more kindness and care in just these past three weeks than most people I've ever known. How would you feel if you could end the hostilities and the people you were trying to help shoved you into a class room?" Harry asked pointedly.

Lily sagged a bit and shook her head.

"Lily, if we're together, you'll be able to watch him all the time, and keep him safe." Remus pointed out. Lily looked up surprised.

"I would expect that from him." She said pointing at Sirius. "But you?"

"Lily, I'm tired of hiding out and spending time gathering intelligence on Death Eaters that isn't going to be used. I want to get a job. Buy a house. Get married and have a family. That isn't going to happen so long as Voldemort is alive and Dumbledore refuses to act the way Harry says he should." Remus said, running his hand through his hair.

"We all deserve the chance to finally live our lives." Sirius added. "Remus, Harry. You, me. Face it Lils, you've been hiding away in this house for sixteen years. Hiding, not living. No one will really be able to live their lives so long as the dark cloud of fear is hovering over us all. We do what the kid say… Go out and take the fight to him. We take away his advantage, we take away his greatest weapon, and we end this war once and for all. Us, not Dumbledore."

Lily looked at them all feeling a growing sense of love and pride for all of them that quickly overshadowed her fear and hesitation. Slowly she nodded and saw each of the most important men in her life begin to smile.

"If we do this, you three have to swear to me that we will be careful. We're not going to take stupid chances, we're not going to go rushing into anything, and when it's all over… we are all at this table once again. Whatever it takes, we all come back here when it's done." She stated firmly.

"So mote it be." Sirius said, raising his glass.

"So mote it be." Remus nodded, raising his own glass.

"So mote it be." Harry followed the example. Lily finally raised her glass and once again looked into the eye of each one of the men around the table.

"So mote it be."

* * *

Hermione looked up at the soft knock on her doorframe. Her mother stood there with a soft smile.

"Fact or fiction?" Emma asked, indicating the book in her daughter's hands.

"New runes book for this year." Hermione replied as her mother entered the room properly.

"Ah."

Hermione noted the hint of the disapproving expression her mother tried to hide and felt a pang in her heart as she always did. Emma sat down beside her daughter and Hermione closed her book as it was clear her mother wanted to speak with her.

"You know, I wish that your father and I could be more supportive of this part of your life." Emma began a little forlornly. "I always thought we were more open-minded and enlightened. But we aren't, and it hurts that I know that."

"I imagine you might be more accepting if I were gay." Hermione smirked softly and her mother shrugged.

"I once thought I would be, but now… I don't know." Emma sighed, reaching out to take her daughter's hand. "Maybe because that world has to remain hidden. It feels like you're part of a cult or something. It isn't normal, and that's what makes it hard for your father and I."

Hermione only nodded and her mother squeezed her hand.

"We still love you. With all our hearts. And I don't want you to ever forget that." Emma smiled and wrapped an arm around her only child.

"I won't." Hermione promised.

"And that brings me to the real reason I came up here." Emma said softly. "There has been this seperation between us since you started at that school. We've had such a tough time connecting with you when you've been home. We've all made our best efforts, but as I told you, your father and I just don't understand. But tonight… tonight was the first time since your were ten years old that we felt as if we had a normal teenage daughter. When we found out you'd met a boy, I can't tell you how much that excited us. Your father finally got to play the scary protective father role he's been looking forward to since the first moment he held you. And I got to tease you like my mother did when I had my first boyfriend."

"I told you both he's not my boyfriend." Hermione rolled her eyes. "He's just some boy I met and shared an ice cream with. He was nice, and I hope I get to see him again, but I don't know if there's anything there yet."

"I know." Emma assured her daughter. "And I know you've had a couple of boyfriends at school, but I wish you could have seen your face the way we did. I also know that you know I believe in love at first sight. You'll question it. You'll doubt it. You'll try and rationalize it. But if it's real, you won't be able to fight it. And it may be that this boy isn't your ultimate match. You may not meet the one your destined for until you go to university, or even much later. The point is that it's my deepest wish that this year, you spend a little less time buried in your studies and try to act like a young woman."

"You've given me this same speech every year." Hermione said and her mother nodded.

"And every year you come home with top marks, and barely any stories about the things you did outside of class." Emma argued. "Every year I tell you how much you're going to miss if you keep your head buried in those pages. And every year you come home and admit that you hardly did anything. Even your friend Padma told us that you spend all your free time in the library. Hermione, that isn't living. So, I asking you to make the biggest, most sacred promise to me, that this year, you will get out of the library. Put the books down. And live your life. When you come home after your final year, I want you to be able to look back and laugh, and cry and cringe and be proud of everything you did. I want you in twenty years to look back on this year and say that it was the best year of your life."

Hermione sighed and looked at her mother and saw the hope burning in her eyes. She couldn't let her mother down. So she took a deep breath and nodded once. The smile that Hermione saw on her mother's face was forever burned into her mind in that moment, and the young woman swore that she would do as her mother wished.

Emma got up, kissed the top of her daughter's head and squeezed her shoulder.

"The next time you see your new friend, invite him to dinner. Your father really wants to meet him." Emma grinned and Hermione shivered slightly.

"I'd rather not scare him off right away." Hermione said quickly.

Emma thought about it and nodded her agreement. "Perhaps after your third date then."

"Mum!" Hermione sighed with exasperation.

* * *

"Right this way sir." Auror Simpkins said, leading Albus Dumbledore through a labyrinth. Albus followed the young man in silence, focusing on what he planned. The two men walk for another five minutes before rounding a corner and finding two individuals waiting for them.

Rufus Scrimgeour was tall, broad shouldered and carried an air of authority. he had a long mane of grizzled blonde hair and sharp brown eyes. He was often called "The Lion" by his fellow Aurors partially for his mane, but also for the ferocity in which he fought with. Rufus had recently been named the head of the Department of Law Enforcement, and Dumbledore wondered if the man found the office constraining.

The second person watched Dumbledore with a worried expression. Minister Amelia bones had agreed to this, though she had also wanted it known that she was doing so under protest. She knew what Dumbledore planned, and was sickened by the thought, though she also agreed that there was no other way.

"Minister, Mister Scrimgeour." Dumbledore greeted each with a nod.

"Albus." Amelia said with a slight tilt to her head.

"Amelia's brought me up to speed on what you plan." Scrimgeour said with a slight growl in his voice. "You're certain that, animal has the answers you seek? How can you be sure she won't play with you?"

"Leave that to me." Dumbledore said.

"You'll keep us in the loop on this?" Amelia asked, trying to confirm what they had agreed to.

"I swear it, Amelia." Dumbledore nodded. "I once believed it was my sole responsibility to do this on my own so no one else would be hurt. Unfortunately, that never happened. I've learned the cost of keeping secrets from those who can help."

Amelia nodded and Rufus looked convinced as he stepped forward to open the heavy iron door across from him. He placed his hand flat against the door and then touched some of the runes that were etched into the metal before stepping back as the door creaked open loudly.

Bellatrix Black sat on a cot in the tiny cell, staring malevolently at the old Headmaster as he entered. She was a stunningly beautiful woman with long wavy black hair and dark piercing eyes that burned with hatred. She had a heart shaped face with angelic, aristocratic features. She was dressed in the simple gray cotton prison dress. She sat straight backed, head held high with her hands resting in her lap. Dumbledore noted that she had magical dampening shackles on each wrist to prevent her from using magic of any kind. These had been designed to discourage a prisoner from trying to steal wands, as well as the rare ability of wandless magic.

"It has been a long time." Dumbledore said politely. Bellatrix's lip curled in a feral snarl. She looked at him as if she were a wild animal, preparing to strike.

Dumbledore conjured a chair and sat down, folding his hands in his own lap. Bellatrix merely watched him as if she were looking for a weakness to exploit.

"You're wasting your time." She said after a long moment of silence. "You won't get anything out of me. Not even with Veritaserum."

"Well that will make things difficult, certainly." Dumbledore said as he reached into his pocket where he pulled three vials and held them up for her to see.

"I suppose you're hoping I will ask what those are?" Bellatrix sat back, now appearing like a petulant teenager with her arms folded on her chest. "Well I don't really care. Your days are numbered. He's going to come for me. You can't stop him. No one can stop him. His power grows everyday. He will burn it all to the ground and rebuild a greater world from the ashes."

"I have no doubt that he is coming for you. Even now his spies are striving to find out where you're being kept, which is why I have brought these." Dumbledore indicated the three vials. "As you said, time is limited and I have very little patience."

Bellatrix looked up now, some of her defiance slipping off her face. Dumbledore slipped his wand out and pointed it at the prisoner. Before she could move he had stunned her. He then opened each vial and poured the contents of each into her mouth. When the third one was emptied, he massaged her throat until it had all been swallowed. He then woke her and sat back down in his conjured chair.

She looked around dazedly for a moment before locking eyes with Dumbledore.

"What did you do to me?" She asked, a slight bit of panic creeping into her voice.

"I simply gave you a cocktail that would make you a bit more compliant." Dumbledore smiled. "You see, I need some information from you, but I have no time for long winded explanations, and no patience for games and riddles. So, I gave you a dosage of something to help me in getting the information I seek. For instance, when I ask how it was your master managed to return from the dead…"

Bellatrix shuddered, and then appeared to be fighting with herself before her eyes widened and she seemed to freeze in place. Dumbledore rose, and set his wand to her temple before pulling the woman's memory out. It was quite a long strand, and Dumbledore could not stop himself from smiling triumphantly as he dropped the memory into a crystal vial he had pulled from yet another pocket.

"What have you done?" Bellatrix demanded when her muscles relaxed and she saw Dumbledore place her memory into his robes. She made to rise and attack him, but found her muscles seized again.

"I would like to know about your masters Horcruxes." Dumbledore said, and again, Bellatrix went through some sort of war within herself before seizing up and allowing Dumbldore to pull another long strand of thought from Bellatrix. Dumbledore noted that this strand was actually several memories all tied together, and knew it would take a lot of study.

When it was safely stored and hidden in his pocket, Bellatrix began cursing and threatening.

"He is going to burn you old man!" She snarled. "He is going to destroy everything you hold dear, and kill everyone you care for, and he's going to make you watch it all. My son is going to rip you heart right out of your chest!"

"Son?" Dumbledore asked with interest. Bellatrix glared at him as if she could set him ablaze with her eyes. "What do you mean when you say son?"

Slowly Bellatrix began to laugh until it rang cacophonously in the old man's ears. She fell onto her bed cackling madly, uttering nonsense. Dumbledore knew that the answer to his question lie within the two vials in his pockets. He turned his back on the hysterical woman and pounded his fist on the heavy iron door.

"Did you get what you needed?" Amelia asked looking concerned. "You weren't in there very long."

"Time will tell." Dumbledore said, still wondering what Bellatrix had meant. He knew Bellatrix had never married. Her devotion to Voldemort was too strong. Everyone knew it. Could she have sired an heir for her master before he had disappeared? Immediately following his fall, Bellatrix had been somewhat reclusive. Perhaps it was possible.

Dumbledore grimaced at the idea and excused himself from Amelia and Rufus, citing a need to get back to his office and begin his research. As he left, he couldn't shake the chill that followed him.


	9. Chapter 9

9.

"You can fool Harry." Sirius began, offering a cup of tea to Lily who was standing on her porch watching Harry and Remus were practicing some of the techniques Harry thought would be useful for them to know.

"You can fool Remus, though he probably suspects." Sirius continued. "But I know you to well. You're not happy about our agreement or Harry leading this crusade."

Lily kept her eyes on Harry but nodded.

"I'm worried about him." She said solemnly. "He's told me a lot about his life in his world before the end of the war. Moreover, because of that, I've learned about how good he is at burying his emotions. The more painful, the deeper he hides it. He's not dealing with his loses Sirius. And it's going to destroy him."

Sirius turned and looked at the young man who was showing Remus a couple of physical throws. Sirius winced when Remus landed hard on his face.

"We all deal with pain in our own way Lily." he said softly.

"I know, but he isn't dealing with it. He's running from it. He's running headlong into our war. Why do you think that is Sirius? Why would he do that if he really does want what he told us he wants?" Lily pressed and Sirius sighed grimly.

"Do you think that perhaps by doing this, it could be that it's his way of dealing with it all?" Sirius asked, though he felt it taste sour on his own lips. The look on Lily's face spoke volumes to Sirius's stupidity.

"Sorry." Sirius sighed.

"I'm scared for him, Sirius." Lily admitted. "I'm terrified that he's looking for a fight that he'll lose."

"Come on Lils…" Sirius began and Lily shook her head, holding up her hand.

"You're not here all the time. You haven't heard him at night. He has night terrors. Real fucking bad ones Sirius." Lily said with exasperation. "He's hiding from his pain instead of dealing with it. And it's going to end up killing him, and I don't know if I can watch it."

"And you would know."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Lily rounded on the man who held up his hands to stop her from getting more upset.

"Look, I didn't mean to…" Sirius ran his hand through his long hair and stepped back before looking up at Lily who was getting more agitated by the second.

"You didn't exactly put yourself back into society after that night." Sirius started over again, looking pointedly at Sirius. "You withdrew and bought this house and stayed as far away from everyone as you could. In the last ten years, we've barely seen you. I know that we're partially to blame what with trying to track down Death Eaters and all. But you didn't once try to get out into the world again." Sirius remarked.

"What are you saying Sirius?" lily snapped, causing him to flinch. "That I've no business telling Harry how to deal with his grief because I've…"

"That is exactly what I'm saying." Sirius replied quickly. "I don't disagree that the kid needs to deal with his shit. However, maybe, just maybe by getting out there with all of us, he may do just that. And maybe we can get Dumbledore to arrange time for him to visit with this Hermione girl. You saw his face when he talked about her. He connected with her. Maybe more time with her will help him to deal with what he lost. Maybe he'll even see that he still has a shot at the life he claims he wants."

Lily sighed and turned to watch Harry and Remus who were now just wrestling like a couple of children. She could here their laughter ringing out, and her hart lightened a bit.

"Promise me Sirius." Lily said quietly. "Promise me that we will help him. Promise me that when he goes back to his world it will be in better shape than when we brought him here."

"And what if he doesn't want to leave?" Sirius asked and lily turned to look at him with small tears threatening to fall.

"Then promise me we will give him the best chance for a full and happy life." She smiled. "Wherever he chooses to build it."

* * *

Three days later, Harry found himself walking up the path towards Hogwarts castle. His heart felt like it was in a vice grip as he stared at the old stonewalls. He glanced over and saw Hagrid's hut, and was startled to see that it was far bigger than the one in his world.

"Remus, is Hagrid the gamekeeper here?" Harry asked.

"Has been for as long as I can remember." Remus replied. "Headmaster Dippett took a lot of criticism when he hired a giant, but Hagrid's helped to forge strong relations with the giants."

"Wait, Hagrid's a full giant here?" Harry asked, nearly stumbling over himself with surprise.

"Yeah.' Remus nodded. "Isn't he…"

"In my world he's a half giant." Harry stated.

"Wow." Remus looked startled. "It's stunning how close, and yet how different our worlds are. Dumbledore said there could be infinite worlds out there that are close to ours. It boggles the mind to try and think about what makes each world different."

"Yeah." Harry agreed. "There could be a world where Voldemort was headmaster, or one where Dumbledore was the dark wizard, or one where I was some kind of super powered genius. A world where my parents lived, and I grew up with them. Maybe even had brothers and sisters. or worlds where I was a girl."

"That's a little disturbing." Remus chuckled. "But it's interesting at the same time. Maybe a world where I was a vampuire, or werewolf, or giant. A world where I was in a relationship with McGonagall, or some teenager or in love with Sirius."

"Oh that's so wrong." Harry wrinkled his nose.

"Indeed." Remus agreed making a sour face.

"What are you two blabbering about?" Sirius called over his shoulder.

"The possibility of you and Remus being married in some other world." Harry shouted back.

"Remus would make me a good wife." Sirius nodded approvingly.

"What the hell makes you think I would be the wife?" Remus called out, clearly offended.

"You have the softer features, and the more feminine hands." Lily responded. "Not to mention how emotional you can be sometimes."

"Ouch." Remus said, clutching his heart.

"I feel like that was payback for something." Harry said, giving Remus a suspicious look.

"Probably." Remus shrugged. "It's okay though. I've got so much on both of them that I can afford to take a shot every now and again."

"Is any of it have to do with the fact that they're in love?" Harry asked.

Remus nearly tripped as he turned to look at Harry.

"Did she say something to you?" He asked. Harry shook his head.

"It's the way the look at each other. When he isn't looking at her, or the other way around. When she talks about him, she gets sort of this dreamy look in her eye. It makes me wonder why they never tried to get together."

"Guilt." Remus replied, and Harry nodded his immediate understanding. "They both feel like it's a betrayal of James. Silly really, but there you are."

Harry was prevented from commenting as they rounded the corner and found Lily and Sirius waiting at the entrance that led to Dumbledore's office, both looking suspiciously at them.

"You can explore the castle after we talk to his beardedness, kid." Sirius remarked.

Dumbledore rose and greeted them as they entered the office, and offered them tea, which they all accepted. Harry noted that the old man looked paler, and nauseated. On his desk was something Harry recognized almost at once, and gave him a feeling of anticipation. He'd spent months reviewing memories and learning about Voldemort with Dumbledore inside a pensive, very similar to the one in front of him.

"Whose memories will we be viewing?" Harry asked.

Dumbledore actually went a bit paler and he was shaking.

"Bellatrix Black." Dumbledore stated and Remus, Lily and Sirius all looked up with shock.

"She gave you her memories?" Sirius asked stunned.

"No." Dumbledore shook his head. "No, I took them. But they are real. Nothing was altered. Of that I am certain."

"Albus, you can't trust her." Lily spoke as if the headmaster were a foolish child.

"I am fully aware of how much I should trust her." Dumbledore stated evenly. "But believe me when I tell you that what you are about to see is truth. She wanted me to know, so that I would be afraid. She wanted me to see the lengths in which Voldemort went to in order to return to power."

Dumbledore waved them all to stand, which they did, converging on the pensieve. Together, they bent and submerged their faces in the bowl, allowing them to be pulled into Bellatrix Black's memories.

It was night, and only the small fire lighted the room. Two people stood in the room. Bellatrix Black, who looked a little care worn, which Harry noted was a far cry from the woman he'd helped capture roughly two weeks earlier. The other person made Sirius, lily, and Remus hiss and curse. Peter Pettigrew looked very different from the man Harry had known. He was short still, but he was broader in the shoulders, and somehow more handsome. His head was completely bald, and he had a neatly trimmed goatee. In his arms, he held a bundle that he held out to Bellatrix.

" _My lord, what has become of you?" Bellatrix sobbed as she beheld the shriveled disfigured mess within the blankets held by Peter Pettigrew._

" _He's weakened from the journey." Peter had stammered. "He needs feeding."_

" _Where did you find him?" Bellatrix demanded._

" _Albania." Peter said opening the door and allowing a considerably large serpent into the room. The beast slithered into one of the sitting chairs nearest the fire to warm itself._

" _Dagon provides the venom needed for the Master's sustenance." Pettigrew said as he slipped a vial from his pocket and went to the serpent to milk its fangs for the putrid yellow venom._

" _He needs to feed at least five times a day. Fill a crystal vial to the top with venom and mix it with goat milk. Make sure Dagon eats as well or she won't produce enough venom."_

" _Wait, where are you going?" Bellatrix demanded as Pettigrew made for the door again._

 _He has tasked me with seeking another of his faithful." Pettigrew said with a prideful smile. Only I can reach him. I also need to find a few other items. Our master is about to be reborn, Bellatrix. Rejoice. This is a happy day!" And with that, the man was gone._

The scene wavered and changed. Harry turned and saw that he was in the same room, though it was lighter. Harry couldn't be certain, but he guessed it was nearing sundown. There were serpents inlayed into the stone of the hearth, and the floor had a large burgundy rug. Bellatrix was seated in a tall, high backed chair where she held the homunculus of Voldemort in her arms like an infant.

" _I am truly honored my lord." Bellatrix said, beaming with pride and squirming in her seat with anticipation._

" _I knew that you would be, my sweet Bellatrix." came the hoarse scratchy reply from the abomination wrapped in blankets._

" _Master, you're certain that this will work?" Barty Crouch Junior asked hesitantly. "I can't stand the thought of us failing you."_

" _And that is why I selected you above all others Barty." The creature remarked. "Azkaban was cruel to you, yes, but it could not extinguish your devotion to me. Not like it has in others."_

" _When my Lord? When can we begin?" Bellatrix asked anxiously._

" _Soon my dear." The abomination replied. "We must wait for Wormtail to return with the final piece of the puzzle. The Ministry took all of his possessions, but they did not destroy them. When he returns with my gift, and the moon is high, then you will perform the ritual to restore me to full strength."_

" _And then the world shall be yours as it was always meant to be!" Barty declared._

Again, the scene wavered and shifted, and Harry and the others found themselves in yet another room. This one slightly larger than the last and completely bare, save for a large altar in the center. There were four wall sconces with candles that lit the room in a soft orange light.

 _Bellatrix sat on the altar watching with unbridled desire as Barty disrobed before her. She had been waiting too long for this and now she was barely able to stop herself from leaping forth and claiming him. But she could not. Everything depended on her following the ritual. That didn't mean she couldn't entice him._

 _Slowly she leaned back, spreading her legs and reaching between them, rubbing herself slowly. She could see that it was affecting him, and she gave a small laugh._

" _I've finished the runes my Lord." Pettigrew said as he got up from his knees, chalk still in his hand as he made his way to the chair where the rotting bundle sat wheezing._

" _It is nearly time." The abomination gasped weakly. "This body is nearly expired. Do it Wormtail! Do it now!"_

" _YES!" Bellatrix cried out, her breast heaving with desire. "Do it now!"_

 _Wormtail lifted the bundle and brought it over to Bellatrix, who took it from him greedily. Pettigrew took a shining silver knife and without preamble sliced open the throat of the thing. Spilling its lifeblood. Bellatrix held the writhing thing above her head showering her self in gore, gasping with ecstasy until there was none left. Pettigrew then took a rather ordinary looking wand from his pocket and, standing before Bellatrix, snapped it. There came an almighty cry and a ghostly blue flame shot forward, encompassing Bellatrix, though it didn't burn her. She had taken on a strange glow that seemed to come from the blood of the foul mutation they had just killed._

" _Now Barty!" Wormtail shouted. "Take her as your own! Now!"_

 _Bartemius Crouch Junior crossed the room and quickly climbed upon Bellatrix's naked body. The two came together in animalistic lust. Bellatrix wrapped her legs around Barty as he slid deep inside her. She clawed at his, grunting hungrily with every thrust._

 _Barty began to grunt more loudly now and Bellatrix could tell he was getting close to finishing. The lust crazed woman looked towards Pettigrew who was looking on with undisguised jealousy and desire for her. She would have laughed at him, but she needed to focus now. She locked her eyes with Pettigrew's and gave a small nod to the shorter man who turned and picked up a knife from a small table._

 _Barty Crouch Junior began to thrust harder and faster now, moaning with pleasure, his eyes wide with ecstasy. All at once, he thrust deep into her, and his muscles seized, and he let out a long low moan of orgasmic joy. Bellatrix tighten her legs around his waist, holding him in place as Pettigrew positioned himself behind her lover._

" _Thank you Bartemius." Bellatrix smirked. "For your sacrifice."_

 _With that, Wormtail reached around Barty and sliced open his throat, showering Bellatrix in blood again. Bellatrix moaned and purred as the warm red fluid covered her while Barty fought to escape her clutches until he began to weaken and then die._

" _Come forth Master." Bellatrix said, sliding back onto the altar, legs spread wide, breasts heaving with anticipation._

 _It started slowly at first. All the blood that had covered her body seemed to flow down her body leaving clean alabaster skin in its wake. She then felt the very slight sensation of pressure around her abdomen pushing outward. There was tingling all over and she could feel her breasts swelling as her abdomen began to grow. She cried out with joy and excitement, beckoning her master forth._

 _In moments, her belly had expanded and electric shock shot through her body. Her cries of joy turned to shrieks of pain as her cervix opened and her body did what came most natural and began to push her abomination of a child into the world._

 _The pain grew in intensity until something began to emerge from within her. Bellatrix cried out in agony, her eyes wide with mad joy as the head crowned._

" _Master!" Bellatrix shrieked. "Come forth and cleanse our world!"_

 _There was a sick wet squelching sound as the fetus finally slipped from her womb and the monstrosity let out an anguished cry. Bellatrix sat up, tears of joy falling down her face as she beheld her demonic offspring. The blood covered fetus rolled, shrieked, and stretched. Bellatrix simply watched in joyous fascination as her child began to grow right in front of her. The beast opened its eyes and Bellatrix's heart pounded harder in her chest as she witnessed the beautiful red orbs taking in the room._

 _The thing rolled again and slipped off the altar, landing solidly on its feet. It bent and Bellatrix and Wormtail heard cracking and ripping as the thing continued to grow. The blood began to disappear to be replaced by soft pale alabaster skin that had the slightest reptilian sheen to it. More cracks could be heard as the thing continued to grow and mature._

 _In moments, Lord Voldemort stood tall in front of his followers taking in his new body with interest. He paid them no mind as he took his first step, his head moving about as he took in the room._

 _Bellatrix was nearly gasping as she beheld her master born anew from her own womb. He was stunningly beautiful in her eyes. He was beautiful. Tall, slender lean and muscular, with sharp facial features and blood stained lips. She wanted him. She wanted to have him more now than she had when she was a younger woman. But more than that, to her surprise, she wanted to mother him._

 _Voldemort turned to face the two living people in the room and bowed._

" _My faithful servant, I give you my gratitude." He said, his voice soft and strong. "You have all given sacrifices to return me, and Lord Voldemort does not forget. Especially you… Mother."_

"Fucking Christ!" Sirius said when he and the others emerged. Dumbledore sat in his chair behind the desk looking truly horrified. Lily walked shakily to a cabinet, opened it, and took out two bottles of fine scotch, which she then set upon the desk. Remus followed her lead and took enough glasses for everyone. When Lily poured each glass, everyone but Harry took theirs and downed it quickly. Harry simply went to the window and stared out onto the grounds.

"What the hell ritual was that?" Remus asked when he could find his voice.

Dumbledore could only shrug.

"Does it matter?" Sirius asked. "What I want to know is if he used one of his Horcrux things in order to complete it.

"You caught that?" Harry asked turning and glancing over his shoulder. Everyone looked at him and he turned to face them fully.

"The wand Pettigrew snapped. That was a Horcrux. A piece of his soul entered Bellatrix's womb to help create his new form. My guess is that's why he looks more human now. Nevertheless, it's one less Horcrux we have to find. My question is how many of them are there. We can't assume that he made only six as he did in my world. We need to know definitively." Harry remarked.

"You said that he chose artifacts of historical importance." Dumbledore commented. "It would stand to reason that he would do the same here, though I feel that the artifacts themselves will be different from those in your world."

"Clearly." Harry said, trying hard not to say something sarcastic. "We also need to know all the places that meant something to him. Places where he might hide his horcruxes. Have you been able to track down anyone who knew Voldemort before he became the Dark Lord?"

Dumbledore looked puzzled at this and stared at Harry curiously." And who was that?"

"Are you taking the mickey?" Harry shouted as he began to glare at the old man. "Tom Riddle! I told you…"

"Harry?" Lily looked at the young man with worry. Harry looked ready to explode, and then his face softened and he began to smirk, and then to smile, and then to laugh.

"Of course." Harry said laughing softly. He came around and slumped into a chair, still laughing. "It's the only thing that makes sense."

"Would you care to share with the rest of us? Remus asked.

"He charmed or cursed his former name so that no one would remember him. Like a fidelius, but on his name." Harry explained.

"Genius." Lily said with awe. "Even his own mother wouldn't remember him and if no one remembers him…"

"Then he doesn't exist." Sirius slapped the arm of his chair. "Bloody brilliant."

"So how do we find out about him if in a few hours none of us, with the exception of Harry who strangely doesn't seem to be affected by this curse?" Remus asked.

"If I were to guess I would say that Harry is unaffected because he's not from our world." Dumbledore said. "As for how we find out about him, I have no thoughts. It is as Remus said. We retain the information of his true identity for only a small period of time."

"Then we only have a single option." Harry sighed. I need access to the school records. He may have only cursed the memory of him, but it's likely that he wasn't able to retrieve his school files. Does your ministry keep records of births?"

"It does, but if it is as you said, and his mother was destitute and gave him up for adoption before she died, then it may not have been recorded with the Ministry." Dumbledore stated.

"But all magical children born do appear in the Hogwarts registry when they are born." Lily suggested. "At the very least it'd be a start."

"This is true." Dumbledore nodded. "And if his records still exist, then there should be records of everyplace he received his Hogwarts letters."

"It's a start." Harry looked pleased.

"So with this information, how will you find out where he hid his Horcruxes?" Sirius asked.

"I haven't gotten that far yet. But if your Voldemort is close enough to mine, then there is a good chance there's one within the castle. And I think it might be a good idea for us to go see if it is in fact in the Room of Requirement."

"The what?" They asked in unison, all with confusion etched on their faces.

"Fucking Hell" Harry rolled his eyes in exasperation.

* * *

Hermione took a seat at the little outdoor table and began scanning the crowd. She was practically bouncing in her seat with anticipation. She taken great care with her look today, and she'd had to suffer some playful teasing from her mother, who had admittedly never seen her daughter get ready for a date before.

The young woman Placed her hands between her knees and rubbed them together for warmth and out of nerves. A woman came out of the café she and Harry had agreed to meet at and placed a glass of water down along with a menu. Hermione smiled politely and tolf her that she was meeting someone. The woman smiled in return and set a second menu down.

"Hey." Harry said coming up behind Hermione, startling her a bit.

"Hey!" She grinned as Harry sat down.

"I'll give you a few minutes." The waitress said.

"I'm so glad you called." Hermione said with a soft smile.

"Well, I wasn't sure when I'd get to see you next with you starting school and all."Harry smiled.

"I take it you won't be going to Hogwarts then?" Hermione asked, looking a little disappointed.

"Unfortunately no." Harry sighed. "I'm going to be traveling quite a bit it seems. However, I will be up at the castle occasionally. I was hoping that when I am able, we could see each other."

"I'd like that." Hermione agreed.

The two began talking about unimportant things, mostly having to do with Hermione's plans for her final year, and how she would be spending her last few days at home. Hermione managed to get Harry to tell her a bit more about himself, though he was just as vague as he'd been the last time they had spoken.

"May I ask why you don't tell me much about yourself? I don't even know where you live, or your middle name, and when you talk about your friends, you never mention their names. Are you ashamed or something?"

Harry looked like he was wrestling internally, and Hermione watched him with anticipation.

"I don't mean to push, but I'd like to know more about you if we're going to be friends." She said softly.

"And I want to tell you." Harry sighed and ran his hands through his hair. "But at the moment, I don't know if it's a good idea."

"Well that's foreboding." She snipped, and Harry chuckled lightly.

"I swear I don't mean to be cryptic." Harry said quickly. "And of all the people I've met since I've been here, I've been the most comfortable with you. And I guess it's for that reason I haven't said much about myself to you. I have this sort of thing where I try to protect the people I care about by trying to keep them at a distance. It's something I've been working on, and if you give me time, I promise I'll tell you everything."

She couldn't help it. Looking in his glimmering green eyes and seeing the intensity in them made her shudder. It was as if he was holding back some great pain that he didn't want to burden her with. That alone made her want to comfort him.

And she could understand him not ready to trust her with everything yet. She had trust issues as well.

"Alright, I promise I'll do my best not to push." Hermione promised.

"Can I ask you about how you're treated at Hogwarts?" Harry asked which cause Hermione to give him a startled expression.

"Why do you want to know about that?" She asked.

"Well, you're a muggleborn, right?" Harry asked, and Hermione nodded in the affirmative. "I was wondering how Muggleborns are treated here. Where I come from, they were looked down upon by most Purebloods. I was wondering if it was the same here."

"Of course it is." Hermione sighed with exasperation. "They see us as less than animals even though we're as strong and as clever as they are. People like Dumbledore are standing up for us, but they control everything in the Ministry and they won't let us prove ourselves. My friend Padma says that most Muggleborns when they leave Hogwarts try to integrate into the wizarding world, but then leave because they can't get any sort of meaningful job. I'm already planning on going to university when I finish. I'm thinking of becoming a doctor, and finding ways to mix magical and modern medicine."

Harry looked intrigued by this and nodded thoughtfully.

"What about the statute of secrecy and all that?" Harry asked.

"The what?" Hermione looked puzzled.

"Aren't we supposed to hide magic from muggles?" He asked perplexed and then Hermione nodded her understanding.

"Is that what they call it where you're from?" She asked. When he nodded, she smiled and shook her head. "Well here it's part of the Merlin Act. But there are allowances for things like what I want to do. Anyway it's the only way I feel like I can make any kind of meaningful contribution to the world."

"I don't believe that's true." Harry stated flatly. "Besides, no one knows what the future holds. Things could change."

"Sure." Hermione nodded. "And Hippogriffs could suddenly fly out of Voldemort's butt and make him realize what a horrible monster he is."

Harry choked on his laughter and Hermione couldn't help but giggle softly at her own joke.

"I'm sorry; I'm not usually so crass." She said, feeling her face heat up.

"Well I like it." Harry said, raising his glass of water to her in salute.

"Don't get used to it." Hermione said warningly. "I'm a lady."

"Even ladies can swear." Harry replied.

"Stop it." She said, swatting his shoulder playfully. "You're terrible."

"Maybe." Harry shrugged. "But I do tend to grow on people."

"I can see that." Hermione nodded. "You've grown on me a little. Which is why I wish you were coming to Hogwarts. It'd be nice to have someone new around."

"In a perfect world I would be there, but things need to be taken care of." Harry said a bit irritably. "And it seems that I'm the only one who can do it."

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked and then held up her hands. "Sorry, I… I didn't mean to pry."

"No, it's okay." Harry said and he once again ran his hands through his hair and looked around for a moment. "It's just that I've found myself in a situation where I'm the only one who can solve the world's problem."

"How do you mean?" Hermione asked, now extremely curious.

Harry looked at her for a long time before he spoke again. Hermione just sat patiently, seeing the struggle on his face. She suspected that he was involved with something important, though she couldn't figure out what it could be. He had told her before that he should be in his final year of school just as she was about to be. She couldn't think of anything that a seventeen-year-old wizard could do that someone like Dumbledore couldn't handle. It made her more curious when she thought about how upset he seemed to be over the entire situation.

"Before I came here, there was this situation." Harry said, trying to stay vague. "There was this person who thought he was better than everyone, and went to great lengths to prove it. In the end though, I had to fight him. I had to because other people weren't able to."

"Wait, that doesn't make sense." Hermione started but Harry held up a hand to stop her from speaking further.

"I thought the same thing, but when it was properly explained to me, it was clear that it had to be me. Because that person made it that way. He put events into motion that forced us to have to face one another. And now, something similar is happening here, and those who should have been able to stop it didn't, and their last resort was to bring me here."

Ok, that's really vague, but it sort of sounds like they brought you here to fight, and I can't think of anyone who needs to be defeated except… Voldemort." Hermione said as her mind began putting the pieces together. "Wait, are you telling me that you're here to fight Voldemort?"

Harry actually looked a little taken aback, and more than a little embarrassed.

"Well that's just ridiculous." She shook her head in disbelief. "How on earth is a seventeen year old supposed to defeat the most powerful Dark lord in history. Someone who Dumbledore himself can't even beat?"

"Has he even tried?" Harry asked. Hermione looked at him as if he was insane, but then shrugged.

"That isn't the point." Hermione scowled. "If you wanted to impress me you could have come up with something a bit more believable."

"I'm not making it up." Harry said trying to defend himself. "Look, Hermione, there's a lot you don't know, and I promised you that I would tell you…"

"Well, I don't know if I can wait now." she snapped. "You can't just tell me that you're here to fight the forces of evil and then not explain why you think you're the only one who can do it."

"I want to." Harry stammered uncomfortably. "I do, it's just…"

"Just what? Hermione asked, and Harry started to fold in on himself.

"I… I…" He stammered.

"What Harry?" She pressed.

Silence weighed them down now, and Hermione was beginning to become agitated.

"You know, I pay attention to how boys talk. And I know that they like to exaggerate to make themselves seem better than they really are." Hermione said looking at Harry with a mixture of disappointment, and hope that he would change her mind.

"After we met, I actually thought that you were different Harry." She continued. "That you might actually respect me and be honest with me. I know that this is only the second time we've spent time together, but if you're going to just make up fantastical stories, then I don't know that I want to waste my time. I'm too old for silly games."

"It isn't a story Hermione." Harry said softly.

"Then make me believe it." Hermione challenged.

"And how am I supposed to do that?" Harry asked.

"I don't know." Hermione shrugged. "Show me some spell of something that would show me you're more powerful than any other witch or wizard that makes you the only one in the whole world who can beat Voldemort."

"I don't… Like what?" Harry asked, now feeling off balance, and beginning to lose his temper. "I'm not a god Hermione, OK? I'm just sort of Destiny's punching bag."

"Uh-huh." Hermione said clearly having had enough. "I meant what I said Harry. I do like you, but I don't have time for this sort of thing. If you want to spend time with me and be my friend, then I need honesty and trust. But iof that's too much for you, then perhaps it's better if you find someone more gullible."

With that she practically leapt out of her seat, grabbing her handbag and storming off into the midday crowds. Harry rose to go after her, but she was gone far too quickly, and harry wasn't sure that he could convince her, especially as he didn't want to talk about everything yet.

He sank back into his chair and groaned miserably. Even though she had made him feel like crap for not confiding in her, he couldn't help but like her even more now. She had fire, and she wasn't going to put up with any of his bullshit. It reminded him so much of Ginny, though to be fair, Hermione was clearly more intuitive than Ginny. And smarter too. Ginny would have needed more clues to figure out who Harry was here to fight.

"She'll understand." Harry said to himself still staring at where she had stormed off. "She'll see, and then she'll understand."


	10. Chapter 10

10.

"So why didn't you just tell her?" Sirius asked. Harry could only shrug.

The two were walking an unkempt trail heading towards the small village of Little Hangleton. The two had come here in search of one of Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes. Going on what Harry knew from his own world, and assuming that Voldemort's life somewhat mirrored the one in this world. Lily and Remus were back at Lily's house compiling a list of possible artifacts that Voldemort could have used while Dumbledore was seeking out former teachers who may have known Lord Voldemort as a student. Harry had written a note reminding Dumbledore of Voldemort's identity so he when he succumbed to whatever the curse was that made people forget, there would be something to remind him.

"I couldn't." Harry sighed. "I tried, but the words wouldn't come. It's like, I don't know. It's like there's some sort of block. I want to tell her, but I don't know if she'll believe any of it. Sometimes I don't believe it."

"You know what it could be?" Sirius asked, and Harry glanced at him. "It could be that you're afraid. You're afraid to allow this girl to get close to you because of what happened in your world. So you're keeping everyone at arm's length. So if you end up losing them during this, you won't hurt nearly as bad."

"What are you some sort of therapist?" Harry asked and Sirius shrugged.

"Just observant." Sirius replied.

Harry grunted and Sirius gave him a sideways glance. The kid was frustrated and he could see it. Lily hadn't been kidding about Harry's refusal to deal with his pain.

"Look, it's none of my business here kid, but if we're going to get into any shit out here, I need to make sure that you're not going to freeze up."

Harry stopped short and Sirius stopped and turned to face the kid who looked ready to spit nails.

"Freeze up?" Harry snapped, sounding thoroughly irritated.

"Yeah, you know." Sirius waved his hands a bit. "Like what happens to muggle soldiers after war or something."

"Freeze? " Harry demanded now looking ready to lash out. "I was the one who took down your Bellatrix. The Minister and all the others were cowering behind picnic tables. From what I understand of this world, the so-called Blade of Voldemort and her little raiding party would have just marched all over those people!"

"And you don't know how grateful I am for that." Sirius said softly, holding up his hands to try to stave off the explosion.

"None of you know what it's like. You all hide and keep thinking someone else will take care of it." Harry continued.

"Now wait a minute…" Sirius tried.

"Your Dumbledore sits in his tower when he could challenge Voldemort. Your Ministry just sits and hopes that the whole thing will blow over when they should be hunting down the Death Eaters. The only ones who appear to be doing something are you and Remus…"

"Well thank you for noticing our efforts…" Sirius began to smile but Harry wasn't going to be stopped.

"But you hide like naughty children instead of rallying people to your cause! Then, then you pull me into this mess! I had just lost everything I cared about. I watched people I care about die! My friend stood against his father because it was the right thing to do and he was murdered for it. My other friend thought he could kill the person who took his family from him and she butchered him. The girl I loved… I never even got to tell her. She…"

Harry's eyes welled up and Sirius came forward grasping Harry's shoulder.

"Don't bottle it back up Harry!" Sirius demanded, and he held Harry by the shoulder. "You've got to let it out, mate."

"She didn't even try to fight him." Harry said weakly, his eyes wide as the memory flooded his mind. "She leapt in front of him, and used a stupid curse she knew would do nothing. He grabbed her and spun her to face me. She looked right at me. She wasn't crying, or even afraid. She just looked bold, knowing that she was going to die."

Harry began to sink, and Sirius helped him down gently, looking apologetic. It had been his intention to make Harry see that he needed to deal with his loss, but he hadn't meant to have it happen then and there. Sirius realized that he had once again misjudged his actions.

"Harry, look. I'm sorry." he began. "I didn't mean to open this all up here. But I thought since we were talking about this Hermione bird, that it might help to show you that you're never going to be able to move forward if you don't let go of the past. You've got a lot to deal with, we can all see it, and frankly, it's scaring the piss out of Lily. And to be honest, I'm worried about you too."

"I'm afraid." Harry said flatly, wiping at his eyes. "I think that I've somehow convinced myself that they're all alive still and if I mourn for them…"

"I get it." Sirius sighed and nodded. He helped Harry back to his feet and watched the younger man try to get himself back under control. "When James died, a part of me died as well. You've got that a hundred fold because you never had a real chance to deal with one before you lost the next. From what you've told us, it all happened really fast. One after another."

"That's war." Harry grimaced and Sirius nodded.

"But you have to deal with it." Sirius pointed out. "The ones we love never really leave us kid. They live on in us. The things they taught us, and the things they shared become part of us, and it's our responsibility to share those things with new people. To become part of other peoples lives and share the lessons we've been taught, and the love we knew with others. It makes us better as people."

"How do you mean?" Harry asked. Sirius dropped his hand from Harry and took a few steps back, collecting his thoughts.

"James's father told us that same thing I just told you after his wife was killed. I asked the same thing you just did, and this is what Fleamont told us then. Life is full of meetings. You wake up, go through your daily routine, and go out into the world. You see people everyday. Some you talk to, others are just faces. People with their own lives and their own stories. But then, you somehow encounter one of these people. Then you form a bond. A friendship or maybe even they become an enemy. But they teach you things, and you are unaware of it when it's happening. Thought your interaction, you learn. Who you are, or those around you teach who you will be to you. You friend… the one who stood up to his father."

"Draco?" Harry asked and Sirius nodded.

"He taught you what real bravery could look like. It is hard to stand up for what's right. It's even harder to do it to your family. This kid defied his own father for you. Because your friendship with him was worth it. Because of the things you taught him. Understand?" Sirius asked and Harry nodded slightly.

"I think so." He said.

"Now you have to continue on and show others the things Draco and the others showed you. I'm not saying hold a seminar, but show them what you were shown. Bravery. Kindness. Laughter, and most of all kid. You've got to show the same love you were shown. And in order to do that, you've got to set free those who showed you love by fighting at your side, and sacrificing themselves so you could live. Get it?"

Harry nodded and after a minute, they began walking again. They continued in silence, each lost in their own heads until Harry looked at Sirius

"You know that might have been a bit more profound if you weren't such a hypocrite." Harry remarked.

Sirius looked at Harry with confusion on his face.

"What are you talking about?" Sirius asked.

"Lily." Harry replied. "I'm emotionally stunted, but I'm not blind. And Remus filled me in a bit. You and lily love each other. And I don't mean as friends. But neither of you will do anything about it because you think you're betraying James. I didn't know the guy, but I think he'd want his friends to be happy, and if that meant the two of you being together, so be it."

"I don't want to talk about this." Sirius said, becoming surly.

"And I don't want to talk about my trauma either, but you just made me melt down, so deal with it!" Harry snarled. Sirius rolled his eyes.

"It's different."

"How?" Harry replied.

"It just is, alright?" Sirius snapped stopping and facing the younger man. "James and lily were meant for each other. We all saw it. We all knew it. It caused some real problems later when Severus decided he was in love with her. Yeah, you may be right, and James might be okay with it, but there are so many others…"

"Who are you trying to fool here?" Harry asked. "If you really love her, and she really loves you, that's all that matters."

"Alright, fine." Sirius said, squaring his shoulder. "I'll make you a deal. You start dealing with you shit, and attempt to move forward, even if it means leaving this war to us like you should, and I'll try and figure things out with Lily."

"I feel like you're just saying that to shut me up." Harry stated. Sirius actually smiled at this.

"I promised lily that I would find a way t help you with your losses." He admitted. "And if this is how I've got to do it, then fine. Is that it?"

Harry turned and saw the small cottage that he'd only ever seen in a memory. It was overgrown with what had once been ivy, but was now just brown and dying. The door was brown and looked like one good knock would knock it off its hinges. The windows were caked with dirt and there was mold and moss growing all over.

"You think anyone still lives here?" Sirius asked.

"No idea." Harry replied. "In my world the Gaunts were all but dead when Voldemort rose to power. The only one left died during the first war, after Dumbledore tracked him down."

"And you think there might be a Horcrux in there?" Sirius asked skeptically.

Harry only shrugged. "I don't know. So much is the same and so much is different, but this is where his mother lived. It meant something to him. The only way you know for sure is to check it."

"Well, let's get it over with." Sirius said as he began up the decrepit path.

Harry followed, trying to take in everything, looking for where the trap was. Dumbledore, the one he had known and trained him, had told him of his experience here. Somewhere within the little hut had been one of Voldemort's horcruxes. He'd hidden the ring inside after he'd killed his muggle father and grandparents.

Sirius reached the door and made a sound of disgust. On the door, nailed like some kind of ornament was the skull of a snake.

"I told you that they were descendants of Salazar Slytherin." Harry reminded his compatriot.

"I know, I know." Sirius said as he knocked on the rotted wood. The door practically fell apart and Sirius looked amused. "I'm guessing whatever magic was holding this place together has long since dissipated."

Sirius took a step forward and as soon as he crossed, the threshold there was a bright flash and a spell hit the side of the door. It missed Sirius badly, but made him retreat. Harry had his wand ready, and was trying to see into the dark of the shabby cottage when a second spell nearly hit him in the face. Harry managed to get out of the way, as the spells smashed into the wall where his head had been.

"I'll kill you!" Came a wheezy raspy shout. "You ain't getting it! I'll kill every last one of ya!"

"How many of us does he think there are?' Sirius asked softly. Harry just shrugged.

"Mr. Gaunt?' Harry said as gently and cordially as he could manage. "Mr. Gaunt we aren't here to fight with you. We've come seeking your guidance."

"You ain't gonna get my fortune!" Came the response.

"What fortune?" Sirius looked at the house with disgust.

"Shut up!" Harry hissed. He turned back to the doorway and took a tentative step forward, slipping his wand back into his wrist holster. "Sir, we're not here for your fortune. We'd actually like to ask you about your sister, Merope."

That was meant with silence. Harry looked at Sirius who was clearly confused. Harry took another small step forward, holding his hands out so the person inside could see he meant no harm.

"Mr. Gaunt?"

"What do you know about Merope?"

A hunched, wizened old wizard shambled out of the dark, leaning heavily on a gnarled wooden cane, his wand in his other hand. His hair was long and matted. His beard was tangled and twisted. As he came into the light Harry could see that one of his eyes was milky and useless, and the other wasn't to far removed from joining the other. His robes hung off of him and were filthy and moth eaten.

"Who are you?" He asked, wheezing.

"My name is Harry, sir. This is Sirius." Harry stated.

"Morfin. Why you wanna know about Merope for?"

"I'm afraid that's a bit harder to explain." Harry said, slowly lowering his hands. The old man eyed him up and down for a minute.

"You ain't with the Ministry, are ya?" Morfin Gaunt asked suspiciously.

"No sir." Harry shook his head. "But we need to know about your sister sir. It's incredibly important."

"She's dead." Morfin said gruffly. "Been dead long time now. Father killed her after she'd given birth to that abomination. Thought she was so clever dosing us with her special potions so we wouldn't realize her husband was a muggle."

"You're father killed her?" Harry asked, glancing over his shoulder at Sirius with an expression of shock. "Wait… she married Tom Riddle?"

"You know him?" Morfin looked up at Harry, a feral snarl on his lips. "You one of them muggle lovers?"

"Sir, we're just trying to learn about Merope's child." Sirius intervened. "Trying to track him down and kill him."

"You are, are ya?" Morfin said, looking as if this was good news. "About time I say. Don't know why father couldn't do it. Merope brought that abomination here as if we was just gonna accept that she bred with that animal. Like we was gonna forget how she'd dosed us with potions and used charms on us to keep us under her thumb. Got what she had coming."

"Can we back up a moment?" Harry asked, still bewildered. "Your sister married Tom Riddle? Did she use amortentia on him?"

"Likely the other way round boy." the man wheezed a laugh that sounded like nails on a chalkboard to Harry. "That muggle boy wouldn't leave my sister alone. Kept coming round here for years. Chased him off a bunch of times myself. Spent time in Azkaban when I got to rough, according to the Ministry. Called it Muggle Harrassment or some such. Bunch of hippogriff shit. Boy was smart though. Never came round when my father was around. Not until Merope started using her potions on us. Father never would have let her marry such filth were he in his right mind. After she runs off with him and we got our sense back, father swore he'd make her pay. Make her see how wrong she was. When she showed up with that half-breed of hers. Father killed her right there."

Morfin was looking into the distance now, remembering how his sister was murdered in front of him. He seemed to tremble slightly, and shook his head spitting out a large yellow glob onto the dirt-caked floor.

"That kid or hers kept crying, and I couldn't stand it. I don't know why father didn't kill it too. But I guess part of him just couldn't harm a baby. He scooped it up and then disapparated. When he came back, he said he took care of it. Never did say what he did with it and I never asked him."

"And what about her husband?" Sirius asked "Didn't he come looking for her?"

Morfin nodded, nearly losing his balance in the effort.

"Oh yeah." Morfin stated. "Came round with half a dozen of those pleezmen, or whatever. Father told me to run. Told me that I needed to get away or I'd wind up in Azkaban again, and I didn't need to rot in one of those cells. I found out later that he killed them all. Merope's husband and all the pleezmen. The Ministry found out and the Aurors came. At the trial, he said he'd do it again. He said he'd kill all the muggles for what they'd done to our family. I would have helped him if he'd let me."

"What happened to your father?" Harry wondered.

"He tried to break out one night. There was some Ministry bloke making an inspection and father knicked his wand. He blew open the cell and made to run for it. The Dementors…"

Morfin shivered and said no more. He turned and began to hobble back into the shadows.

"Mr. Gaunt, did anyone ever come to see you claiming to be Merope's child?" Harry asked. "Mr. Gaunt?"

"Fix my damned door on your way out." was the only response.

Back out on the road, Sirius looked back over his shoulder, admiring his repair job on the Gaunt door.

"So I'm guessing there's no Horcrux in there." He said turning back to Harry who looked reflective.

"No, I don't think so. Unless that was the fortune Morfin was talking about."

"You didn't expect to see him, did you?" Sirius wondered.

"I told you, in my world, they were all dead." Harry reminded Sirius. "Our two worlds are parallel in so many ways that I don't know the differences until they're staring me in the face. At this point, I don't know if Voldemort came here to seek out his ancestors. His father was already dead by the time he got to Hogwarts. We know he made horcruxes thanks to the memories Dumbledore got from Bellatrix, but we don't know how many or what they were and my only lead just told me that the timeline is different then the one I know. I'm flying completely blind here Sirius. I don't know what to do or where to look."

"It's okay kid." Sirius said, patting Harry on the shoulder. "We'll figure it all out. Maybe we should try and search the castle. You did say he felt like Hogwarts was a home, and he hid one there. Maybe ours did the same. Maybe that at least is one similarity between our worlds. And then you could have a chance at talking with your lady friend and try and clear the air between you two."

Harry grimaced. "She was pretty hacked off." Harry said glumly.

"Of course she was. " Sirius laughed. "Kid, she feels like you're lying to her. Show her you're not. Tell her. We'll back you up. Hell, take her to Dumbledore. He'll set her straight. Once she knows that you're not trying to impress her with grand tales of wonder, she'll calm down, and maybe you two crazy kids can get on with being crazy kids."

"And now you sound like my Sirius." Harry chuckled.

"He sounds fascinating!" Sirius laughed as Harry shoved him.

* * *

Lester Holtkiss locked the door behind him and then as he passed through the next, closed and locked it as well. There was only one prisoner, and she had no wand or weapon, but he wasn't taking any chances. The Blade of Voldemort was as clever as she was beautiful. Not to mention deeply psychotic. Lester had once heard a tale about how she had disemboweled three men and then made a bed of their entrails where she had made love to her master. He didn't think it was true of course, but the mental image still sickened and frightened him.

Lester had just given the prisoner her evening meal, and was now heading back up to the desk where Kenneth and Ahmad were waiting. Lester was feeling lucky and a good game of cards would pass the time until shift change.

When Lester rounded the corner, his heart shot into his throat.

Kenneth was splayed out on the table, his chest open and his innards laying about the floor. Ahmad was sitting in his chair, his head in his lap, and before him stood a handsome man with alabaster skin and haunting red eyes.

"You compatriots were most unhelpful." Lord Voldemort said with an acid tone. "I've come for my mother."

Lester felt his bowels loosen as he reached for his wand, which was violently ripped, from his hands. Voldemort held the wand in his long thing fingers and examined it with mild interest before he snapped it in two. The Dark Lord then turned his attention back to Lester and a deeply menacing smile formed on his reddened lips. His sharp teeth glistened white and he moved as if her were made of smoke. Lest felt those long thin fingers wrap around his neck, lifting him up.

"I know she's here. I can feel her." Voldemort hissed softly. "I wish for you to take me to her."

"N-n-no." Lester gasped, trying to wrench those impossible strong fingers off of his windpipe.

"Very well." Voldemort grinned, and pointed his wand between Lester's eyes. There was a flash of deepest crimson, and Lester began to feel warm. And then hot. He began to sweat profusely, and his skin began to itch. In his belly, it felt as if he'd swallow battery acid. His throat became scratchy and then it felt as though someone were pouring molten metal down his gullet. His eyes began to feel raw, and he felt as if he were being boiled alive. He began to scream, and blood erupted from his mouth and eyes.

Lord Voldemort released the wretch and watched him writhe in pain for ten seconds before he stilled with death. The Dark lord then turned his attention to the door, and with a wave of his wand, smiled as it turned to ashes. He did the same to the next door, and followed the pull in his center. An invisible line that connected him to his most loyal and faithful follower. One whom he'd groomed since the day she'd joined his Death Eaters, and who was the only one he ever considered for the honor of helping him regain from. His new mother. Bellatrix Black.

He stopped before her cell, and placed a long hand on the door, sensing her just behind it. As before, he removed the door and found her lying on a hard metal slab. She rose up, a look of purest glee lit up her dark eyes, and she fell to her knees, kissing the hem of his robe.

"I knew you would come for me Master. I never doubted you." She praised him.

"I would never abandon you, Mother. You who have never wavered in your devotion. "He said, drawing her ups with a wave of his hand.

"My Lord," She said, unable to look into his eyes. "My lord, the old man. Dumbledore. He looked into my mind. He saw how you were reborn unto me. He knows your secret now. I tried to fight him off, but he… he tricked me. He…"

"He will pay for his crime." Voldemort said quickly. "And soon."

With that, lord Voldemort turned and began to lead her out. She gave a gasp of glee when she saw the bodies of the guards, and gave out laughter of purest joy when she saw the seven others Voldemort had slaughtered to get to her. When they were outside of the Ministry stronghold, Lord Voldemort set it ablaze with Fiendfyre. Bellatrix cackled madly remembering how she'd told everyone who had questioned her that her son would make them pay.

* * *

"Miss Granger." Professor McGonagall smiled when she caught sight of one of her favorite students. She knew of course that she shouldn't have favorites, but sometimes it was difficult not to. Hermione Granger was one such case. She was, simply put in McGonagall's mind a brilliant young woman who was destined for great things.

"A little odd to see you out here and not in the library, though it is comforting to see you reading. Though, that is an odd choice." McGonagall stated, motioning to the copy of _The Power of_ Love Hermione held.

"Well, my homework is all finished, and it's rather noisy in the Common Room at the moment and it's a nice day. There's not really anything ling sitting on a window ledge in the sunshine with a good book." Hermione smiled. "Though this isn't really that good. Some of it's interesting though."

"Really?" McGonagall asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Sure." Hermione nodded. "I mean we know that many spells we use are powered from emotion, and this has a rather unique take on a few of them. And the author is more clinical than fanciful. Still, I find myself wondering if one part could be true."

"Would you like to tell me about it?" McGonagall asked, now curious.

"Soul mates." Hermione said simply, looking a little ashamed. "Do you think Soul mates really exist?"

"Oh my dear, I've seen much in my time to be sure. But I've never seen anything that could prove to me that two people were meant to be together." McGonagall laughed until she saw Hermione's face fall a bit.

"May I ask what brought on this fascination?" She pressed lightly. Hermione looked as if she'd rather not speak about it, but then seemed to change her mind.

"It started while I was on holiday with my family in France. All of a sudden, I started to feel as if I needed to be somewhere else. I thought I was getting ill or something. I went to a bookstore to look up magical maladies and their symptoms, and I found this. I don't know why I bought it. But like I said, there are some interesting things in it." Hermione took a deep breath.

"Then I got to the chapter on soul mates." She sighed. "And it was clear that the author didn't believe in them either, and I thought it was all silly, until it started to describe things I was feeling. And I could have still dismissed it all… until I met someone, and I felt strangely whole. Now I know it could just be coincidence, and that I'm still feeling the start of some illness that hasn't manifested. But I haven't seen the boy in two weeks now, and I feel rotten all the time."

"Have you spoken to Madam Pomfrey and asked to be looked over?" McGonagall asked and Hermione shook her head.

Not yet." She said with a hint of shame. "But to be fair, I don't know how to describe my symptoms. And they seem to worsen when I think about the boy I met. Which is so weird that I think about him because the last time I saw him, I told him I that unless he could stop lying to me I didn't want to see him again. But now I'm wondering if this soul mate thing has some merit, and that's got me all confused. If they do exist, how come I never felt like this before? Why haven't I felt this so-called pull towards him before? What makes him so special? Do I have to be with him? Do I not get a choice in the matter? Why would my soul want to be with someone so dishonest and disrespectful?

"Oh dear child." McGonagall chuckled. "As I said, I don't believe in such nonsense. Soul bonds, or mates or anything like that is as reliable as Divination. However, in all my years I have seen love blossom in the very worst of enemies. I have seen friendships form that have lasted several lifetimes it seemed. I don't pretend to understand how the heart works when it comes to these matters, but I do know that when it sets its desire upon someone, there is little we can do. Sometimes it works out, but most of the time it ends in severe pain for someone. I also know that boys are quite simple creatures, and are limited in their intelligence when they fancy a young woman such as yourself. My best guess is that this young man was obviously intimidated by you after getting to know you a bit, and thought the only way to impress you was by creating some cockamamie story in which he was the dashing hero. Perhaps if you were to see him again, give him a chance to correct his error, things might work out."

"I've actually been contemplating that a lot." Hermione looked a little guilty as she spoke. "He was just so easy to talk to, and so understanding. I haven't had much of that, and it was nice to feel like someone was interested in me for me and not their homework. But he was so… reserved? And then when I finally got him to talk about himself, he was so secretive. And then, Professor, if you can believe it. He claimed that he was here to defeat Voldemort. I mean, there's trying to impress a girl, and then there's that!"

"Miss Granger…" McGonagall's humor had evaporated in an instant. "What was this boy's name, if you please?

Hermione looked up, alarmed by McGonagall's change in demeanor.

"Harry. Harry Potter."

"Oh my word." McGonagall gasped, looking up and down the corridor with alarm. "Please, gather your things, and come with me."

The Transfiguration Professor said no more until they were in her office and the door shut. She urged Hermione to sit as she went around and sat behind her desk. Hermione looked extremely nervous, and McGonagall suddenly realized that she had acted as if she was going to punish the young woman.

"My apologies Miss Granger, but you aren't in any trouble. It is simply that you have sort of stumbled into something that is better kept quiet. If you wouldn't mind, please tell me how you met Mister Potter."

Very confused now, Hermione explained her first and subsequently he second meeting with Harry. How he had been extremely nice, and friendly and she was charmed by him. Up until he made up that story about being the only one who could defeat the darkest wizard in history.

"As it turns out, he may have been telling you the truth." McGonagall said when Hermione finished.

"I'm sorry?" was Hermione's only response.

"Mister Potter wasn't trying to impress you. He was telling you the truth. At least part of it." McGonagall stated.

"Professor, First, how do you know Harry? He hasn't been a student here. And how could he beat Voldemort? He told me he should be in school, which means he hasn't taken his NEWTs yet."

"Miss Granger, just because one hasn't passed an exam doesn't mean they are incapable." McGonagall chastised, and Hermione held up her hand.

"You know what I meant." Hermione said irritably. "Just, tell me what you know about him."

"I can't do that I'm afraid." McGonagall sighed heavily. "For various reasons. And I would encourage you not to speak too much about Mister Potter, for his safety as well as your own. "

And then McGonagall's expression softened and she leaned forward with a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"On the other hand, if you do happen to bump into him again, I do encourage you to give him a second chance. That young man has been through quite a lot. He could truly use a friend like you Miss Granger."

"What do you mean? What happened to him?" Hermione asked clearly boggled by all of this.

"It isn't my story to tell." McGonagall stated sadly. "But out of everyone he could have spoken to in Diagon Alley, he chose to speak to you. Now I still have not seen anything to make me believe in soul mates, but perhaps they are possible."

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, looking at her favorite teacher with hope.

"When you learn more about this young man," McGonagall said with a knowing smile. "You'll understand, and maybe you'll believe it is possible as well."

* * *

Albus Dumbledore sat at his desk with the day's discipline reports in his hand, though he wasn't seeing them at all. His mind was still on the problem of Voldemort's horcruxes. He had not yet heard from Sirius Black to find out if his and young Harry's expedition had been successful. Nor had he heard from Remus or lily to know if they had been able to track down anything on Voldemort's beginnings.

Dumbledore was beginning to feel as though there was far too much and that they should ask for help. On the other hand, the fewer people who knew meant less chance of it being learned by the wrong people. His spy had reported recently that Voldemort was amassing his forces and that there was talk of something big in the works. The hunt for his favorite follower had sidetracked Lord Voldemort though. Dumbledore only hoped that he would be sidetracked for a while longer. The more time they had to find his abominations, the better.

The old wizard thought about the ritual Voldemort had used to be reborn, and how he had sacrificed one of his horcruxes to do it. The wand had been simple. Oak if Dumbledore wasn't mistaken. If Harry were to be believed, then the wand held some significance to the dark wizard. Perhaps a trophy from someone he had killed, or a wand that had belonged to a famous witch or wizard. It was most definitely not one that belonged to any of the founders of Hogwarts. Those were rumored to be buried with each of their owners, though no one knew for sure. Godric Gryffindor's resting place wasn't known. Salazar Slytherin had requested to be buried in the mountains, and no one alive knew where he'd been laid to rest. Rowena Ravenclaw was entombed in France, and Helga Hufflepuff had chosen to be cremated, her ashes spread all over England and Scotland. Her wand had been in her hand when she'd been cremated.

So whom did the wand belong to? Was it his own? One he'd used while he had been a student here at Hogwarts? That seemed the most likely scenario. Perhaps he'd won a superior wand in a duel, and chosen to make his original wand a Horcrux. Yes, that had to be it. And perhaps then, Olivander would know of that wand's owner. He could show Olivander the wand from his own memory of it, and the old wandmaker might know whom it had belonged to. The man had an uncanny ability to recall every single wand he'd ever sold and to whom. It was rather disturbing sometimes.

The old man was ripped from his thoughts when the fireplace erupted in green flames, and the Minister of Magic stepped into the office looked quite pale, and more than a little terrified.

"Albus!" She panted. "Albus, he found her. Bellatrix Black was broken out of our facility. There's no one left alive."


	11. Chapter 11

11.

"Let me get this straight, because in all honesty it sounds fucking ridiculous, given your situation…" Harry shook his head looking more than a little annoyed. "You had Voldemort's second in command in a super-secret prison, which wasn't under the Fidelius charm and had no other protective wards other than an alarm, and was guarded by less than ten people and you're surprised that Voldemort all but waltzed in and freed her?"

Sirius, who stood nearby snorted at Harry's query.

Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt didn't share Sirius' amusement and rose to his full substantial height and glowered down at the boy menacingly.

"You should watch your tongue boy, before someone cuts it out." He threatened in his deep rumbling baritone. "You're speaking to the Minister of Magic."

"You'd get one shot Auror Shacklebolt, and then I'd kill you." Harry replied. "You get respect when you earn it, not because you have some fancy title."

"We felt that by not using wards, it would draw less attention." Amelia explained lamely.

"You know what else draws less attention? The Fidelius, repelling wards. You could have placed traps on the door, or some kind of wards to alert you when something was near. For fuck's sake, he has a rat Animagus as a spy!"

The Minister of Magic had never felt so ashamed, and it was all at the hands of this young man who was absolutely right in everything he was saying. She hated him for it, even though she knew he was correct. They could have done more. They should have done more. She hadn't thought things through, and had relied on Dumbledore's plan to keep Bellatrix black's location secret.

"Here's a question..." Harry snarled. "Why didn't you bind her magic? I mean, I get that you don't want to kill her, given how much information she had on Voldemort and how woefully lacking we are in that matter. Second in command of your enemy's forces, you keep her alive and pump her for information until she has nothing left to give, even though she deserves an extremely painful death. But why didn't any of you think to incapacitate her permanently?"

"Because that would be inhumane." Dumbledore stated.

"INHUMANE?" Harry shouted his eyes wide with befuddlement. "She's killed how many people? Tortured how many? And now she's free to wreak havoc again! Christ on a cracker what the fuck is wrong with you people?"

"How dare you tell us how to treat our prisoners. Who are you to speak to us as if you know what is right and wrong!" Amelia snapped, unable to let her self be berated by this boy any longer. Harry just started to laugh.

"You're right." He said when he got himself under control. "You're right. Who the hell am I to tell you to tell you how to run your stupid war? I mean, it's not like I'm the only person in this room who has ever face Voldemort and not only lived, but killed him! I'm also the only person who has ever beaten 'The blade of Voldemort' and gift wrapped her for you. You know the guy you ripped from another world to FIGHT YOUR FUCKING WAR FOR YOU!"

"That's enough." Dumbledore declared, gripping his wand under the table in case he needed to prevent anyone getting hit with spells. "Bickering doesn't solve our problem. Bellatrix has no doubt informed her master what it was I took from her…"

"Oh for fuck's sake, you didn't obliviate her?" Harry cried with exasperation. "Don't any of you think?"

"Harry, that's enough." Lily said reaching out and taking his arm, trying to calm him down. "I agree that more should have been done, but shouting them for being shortsighted isn't going to solve the problem."

"She's right kid." Sirius added. "Mistakes were made that shouldn't have been made, but there's no fixing that. We learn from them and move forward. So that's what we need to figure out now."

"Minister," Harry said after taking a deep breath. "If you have any chance at ending this war for good, you need to be more devious than your opposition. More ruthless. Don't worry about what people will say or think. Leave that to history. Your job is to protect people, and to do that, you're going to have to fight dirtier than Voldemort."

"Declare war." Sirius spoke up from where he'd been standing. He was looking directly at Amelia now, his eyes hard. "The Ministry's been treating Voldemort as if he was some criminal that the Aurors might pick up and bring to justice for over thirty years. Declare war, and you'll be free to act in the appropriate way against him and his death eaters. It's also gives you the authority to search everyone within the Ministry and weed out any of his spies."

"I can't declare war…" Amelia started to say when Sirius cut her off.

"Because of the Wizengamot?" He asked quickly. "Fuck those old bastards. Half of them are probably Death Eaters anyway and are doing all they can to stop you from fighting back. The other half is likely in Lucius Malfoy's pocket, which effectively makes them Death Eaters."

"There are provisions that would allow you to govern without the approval of the courts." Remus pointed out.

"You're talking about Marshal Law." Amelia said looking skeptical. "We don't have the forces to…"

"There are people within the Order who could be appointed to the Auror corps, and you would be able to call back retired Aurors who were still fit for duty." Remus said quickly.

"Not to mention being able to use private contractors." Sirius added.

"You're talking bounty hunters." Amelia groaned.

"We prefer the term pest eliminators." Remus grinned.

"I can't do that." Amelia rose from her seat, looking horrified.

"Would you prefer to be known as the Minister who allowed a tyrant to take over, or would you prefer to be remembered as the Minister who did all she could to protect her people?" Sirius pressed. "Amelia, we're talking about millions of lives. We already know Voldemort's begun reaching out to people on the continent who are sympathetic to his cause. If we don't do something… anything… we're going to lose. And we're going to die."

Silence fell in the room as Amelia Bones considered everything. She turned and looked each person in the eye, lingering on Harry who was still fuming over their stupidity.

"The Wizengamot will fight me. They'll call for my head." She said.

"But they'll follow procedure, which gives us time." Dumbledore said, also rising from his seat. "And in that time, we can show that you were right. Through searches we can show how infested the Ministry is with Death Eaters."

"When you can prove they're in the Wizengamot, they'll be forced to hold elections for replacements." Lily pointed out. "That will give you more time to gather forces and intelligence, and it would give Dumbledore time to find those Horcruxes."

"I hate to say it." Kingsley murmured. "But they're right, Minister. This may be our last and best hope. If we're going to go down, I think I'd rather go down fighting."

Amelia swallowed hard as she continued to look at them all, and a fierce determination roared to life in her belly. They were right. They had been treating Voldemort like some common criminal and it had cost too many lives to count. It was time for real action if they had any hope in surviving, much less defeating their enemy.

"Amelia.' Remus said, going to the Minister and taking her hands in his. He looked deep into her eyes and gave her his most confident smile. "You aren't alone in this. We'll all be right behind you. And I will be right at your side."

"Do you swear?" Amelia asked.

Remus took a step forward and kissed Amelia. Lily's eyes went wide and she turned to give Sirius a questioning look. Sirius merely shrugged, and Lily swore she'd kick the old Marauder's butt for not sharing that little tidbit with her before now.

"Alright." Amelia said when Remus had pulled away. "Alright. But if we're going to do this, we need to communicate with each other. There can be no secrets."

She leveled a pointed stare at Dumbledore who nodded his understanding.

"I agree that between us there should be no more secrets." Dumbledore nodded. "Though for the protection of everyone we should minimize our contact. If it were known that you and I were conspiring…"

"No." Harry said looking up. "No, let it get out. Leak it to the Daily Prophet. Let it slip out that you and Dumbledore have a plan to end Voldemort. If what Dumbledore's spy said about his forces preparing to move is true, then maybe this is what we need to slow him down. If he thinks there's a real threat to him, he might hold off until he can discover what it is."

"That's a really good idea." Sirius nodded. "Spread some propaganda of our own."

"That may work" Dumbledore agreed looking rather put out that he hadn't thought of something similar.

"Alright." Amelia nodded, glancing at Shacklebolt who gave a nod of understanding. "I should go. It seems I have a speech to right, and some new policies to draft. Kingsley, assemble every Auror we have and reach out to those retired Aurors who are still able to fight. Remus, Sirius… Don't go crazy yet."

Sirius smiled, and clapped his hands together in triumph, while Remus just gave her an affectionate smile and nod. Amelia then turned to Harry, but didn't say anything. Harry returned her stare as if the two were communicating on an entirely different level. Then Amelia snatched up her cloaks, and followed by Shacklebolt, left.

"So what now?" Lily asked.

"Well, since Bellatrix wasn't obliviated we have to assume that he will move his horcruxes. It could be that he just gathers them together. We have to find a way to find out." Harry said and Dumbledore nodded.

"My spy will be able to let us know." the old headmaster stated.

"What were you able to find out about Tom Riddle?" Harry asked Lily.

"Thanks to your compulsion notes to keep us reminded what we were looking for we did find records of a Tom Riddle residing at an orphanage in London. The place had been demolished sometime in the nineteen eighties, and the last owner a Mrs. Cole has been dead for ten years."

"It's clear that he tried hard to separate himself from his beginnings." Remus added.

"Yeah, it makes the legend more profound if he came from nowhere." Harry agreed. "But he didn't eliminate everything. We met his Uncle Morfin Gaunt, and learned what became of her. Very different from my world, but the results were the same. He would still fear death, and believe himself special."

"So no Horcrux there?" Dumbledore asked and Harry shook his head.

"Now wait, Morfin kept telling us that we wouldn't get his fortune. What if he was talking about a Horcrux?" Sirius asked.

"No, Voldemort wouldn't have left…" Harry stopped. He was still thinking of his Voldemort. This one was different, and it was possible that he might have left something with his uncle and convinced him it was worth a fortune.

"Ok, maybe we need to go back. Maybe we can talk him out of it. While he's no innocent, there's no reason to kill him just to get our hands on whatever it could be." Harry said and Lily smiled proudly at him.

"You know we've never discussed how we would destroy these things when we found them." Remus pointed out. "How did you do it in your world?"

A combination of things really. The most effective was the Sword of Gryffindor. Basilisk venom worked beautifully and Fiendfyre."

"Fiendfyre is impossible to control, how did you manage it?" Sirius looked impressed.

"I didn't." Harry stated.

"Godric Gryffindor's sword was lost to the ages I'm afraid, but there might be an alternative if it can be located. Before they turned on one another, Godric Gryffindor and Salazar Slytherin were the best of friends, and wielded twin swords. Godric's held rubies, while Slytherins hade emeralds. Other than that, they were identical."

"Do you have it?" Harry asked intrigued.

"I am afraid not, but if legend is correct, then it rests within the Chamber of Secrets." Dumbledore said looking morose. "And no one alive knows its location.

Harry began to smile broadly and everyone looked at him with questioning expressions.

"You know where it is." Remus said looking to the others as they all began to smile.

"I'll be back." Harry grinned, slipping out of Dumbledore's office before anyone could stop him.

* * *

Hermione Granger was more than a little irritated. Once again she was doing patrols by herself as her partner, Seamus Finnegan, was off in some broom cupboard snogging whichever girl he'd managed to lure into his clutches. She was really hoping to find him tonight and make him pay for leaving her to do the patrol alone. Not that she really need him to help her, or that she wanted his company. But it was the principle of the thing.

It was probably for the best that she was alone. She was barely able to focus on what she was supposed to be doing as it was. For the last week, it had been a nearly impossible task to think about anything but a certain young man whom she hadn't seen since before coming back to Hogwarts. But it had gotten worse over the last week ever since she had talked to McGonagall. The Transfiguration hadn't actually confirmed that Harry Potter was what he claimed. But it was clear that the Head of Gryffindor house knew much more about the boy then she had been letting on, and it made Hermione more curious about the boy with the messy hair and impossible green eyes.

Her budding obsession had gotten so bad that her friend Padma Patil had noticed, and asked her about it after dinner when they had been studying in the library.

"Okay, what is going on with you?" the pretty Indian girl asked looking inquisitively at her curly haired friend. "I just told you that I pulled Crabbe and Goyle into a broom cupboard last night and all you could say was that's nice?"

"What?" Hermione looked up startled and disgusted until everything she'd heard in the last hour fell into place. "Gods I'm sorry. I've just had a bit on my mind."

"Alright, spill." Padma ordered. "What's his name?"

"What are you…" Hermione started but Padma cut her off with a shake of her head.

"You don't spend time with Lavender and my sister without learning a few things, and the way you've been spacing out since the beginning of the year and sometimes, for no reason at all you get this sort of shy goofy smile on your face only to have it disappear a moment later and be replaced by a look that could stop a dementor! It can only be a boy… or a girl." Padma explained. "So who is it?"

"It's a really long story." Hermione sighed deciding it was better not to deny it. Padma was tenacious if nothing else, and she was also extremely observant, especially in the affairs of their fellow students. She had successfully predicted more than one hundred couples getting together or breaking up in the last two years. While Hermione didn't believe in Divination, she thought Padma had a real gift in seeing the future of love.

"I got time." Padma replied looking happy.

"I don't." Hermione smiled back. "I have to finish this essay and I have patrols in an hour."

"Then giver me the specifics. Who is he, and when did you start to like him? Or her. I won't judge." Padma grinned. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"It isn't a girl." She refuted

"Not judging." Padma held up her hands.

"And he doesn't go to Hogwarts." Hermione continued. "I met him in Diagon Alley and his name is Harry. I don't know a lot about him and I only talked with him twice, and the second time didn't go that well."

"But he's still on your mind a lot." Padma pointed out.

"Yes." Hermione sighed with exasperation. "I keep trying to forget him, but there was something about him. Like this sort of sadness. But he was so nice, and sweet, and I feel like we connected. And then I learned that Professor McGonagall knows him, and she wouldn't tell me anything about him and now I can't get him out of my head no matter what I do!"

"Wow." Padma looked impressed. "I've never seen you even close to this smitten!"

"I am NOT smitten." Hermione remarked looking cross.

"Oh my gods, you are so in love with him." Padma replied beginning to giggle.

"Shut up!" Hermione scowled, shutting her books and packing them away.

"Oh Hermione I'm sorry." Padma said reaching out and grabbing Hermione's wrist. "I wasn't making fun of you."

"I know." Hermione stated though she was still irritable. "I just. I need to go okay? I'll see you tomorrow."

And with that she had left her best friend and made the journey to Gryffindor Tower where she had dropped off her things, suffered some sarcastic remarks from Ronald Weasley before she headed out for patrol.

She had decided that she was going to tell Padma everything at breakfast the next morning, thinking that if she talked about it, perhaps she might be able to get over whatever this was and move on. She could forget all about…

"HARRY?"

Harry potter looked up and his face broke into a smile as he saw Hermione Granger's stunned face.

"Hey Hermione." He said with a bright winning smile.

"What are you doing here? And why are you coming out of the girl's bathroom?" Hermione asked looking as confused as she sounded.

Harry opened his mouth to respond and stopped himself suddenly as Sirius's and lily's advice about dealing with Hermione came back. The truth was he did like Hermione. She was extremely smart, and very sweet to him. In some ways she reminded him of Ginny from his world, but she was so very different at the same time. But he remembered how she had reacted when he refused to tell her about himself, and how she had stalked off. It had cut him deeper than he had thought it would, and he didn't want to make the same mistake.

"Okay, I know this is going to sound ridiculous, but I'm actually looking for the Chamber of Secrets." He said.

Hermione put her hand on her hip and stared at him with a look of disbelief.

"I swear to you." Harry added quickly.

"And Salazar Slytherin's infamous hidden chamber is in a girl's loo?" Hermione asked skeptically.

"Well, it was in my world." Harry stated which earned him an eye roll. Hermione made to turn around.

"I think I need to get Professor McGonagall." She started but Harry all but leapt forward and took her wrist. Not tightly, but enough to stop her.

"Come with me." he said gently. "I will explain everything, and I swear to you it's all true. Afterwards, I'll even take you to Dumbledore so he can confirm it all."

Hermione couldn't help but be moved by the look in his gorgeous green eyes. The way he was looking at her made her heart beat so fast she thought it might burst from her chest and her throat clenched making it hard to swallow. So she only nodded.

"Thank you." He said as he released her wrist. "Besides, I think I need your help. The castle is similar enough to my own, but things are in different places. "Where's Moaning Myrtle's bathroom?"

"Moaning who?" Hermione asked with bewilderment.

"Damn." Was Harry's dejected response.

The two struck out with Harry beginning his fantastic tale, pausing every so often to ask about different bathrooms. As they walked and visited every girl's loo Hermione knew of, Harry continued to tell Hermione about the world he was from, the war he'd fought, the friends he'd lost and finally of the night he left that world to come to this one. Hermione hung on every word, though some of it just sounded to unbelievable. Fighting off a hundred Dementors, or winning the Triwizard Tournament only to come face to face with the reanimated man who had tried to kill him when he was a baby, or facing a basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets…

"Hang on." Hermione stopped him as they left the seventh bathroom they'd searched for the hidden entrance to the Chamber of Secrets. "Are you saying that there is a Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets and you want to go down there? Are you completely mental?"

"I'm not sure what's down there at this point." Harry replied. "Like I said, everything is the same while being different. In my world it was a Basilisk. In this one it could be something else. A Chimera or a dragon or who knows what. There could be nothing at all. Not to mention the fact that we can't seem to find the entrance."

"Well, we've only checked Girl's bathrooms. Could it be in a boy's?" Hermione asked, and Harry shrugged.

"I suppose so." Harry conceded, and Hermione then began to lead Harry around to all the boy's bathrooms on the second floor. And every one of them turned up nothing.

"Well what is it exactly you're looking for?" Hermione asked after the eighth bathroom.

"The entrance is marked by and engraved snake." Harry sighed looking around loo, and then smirking at Hermione's slightly wrinkled nose. "First time in a boy's bathroom?"

"Oh shut up!" Hermione scowled and turned, heading out the door. Harry followed her out. "In my world it was on the faucet in a girl's bathroom. A girl named Myrtle died in there, and that's how I figured it out."

"So someone died in that particular bathroom?" Hermione asked thoughtfully.

"Yeah." Harry nodded. "Wait; is there a bathroom on another floor where someone died?"

"Well, if you believe the stories, a prefect died in the Prefects bathroom on the third floor." Hermione began. "I heard the story when I was in my first year that a prefect was found half eaten like sixty years ago. No one knew what happened to him, or…"

"Where is it?' Harry asked, taking her hand and heading for the nearest staircase.

"SLOW DOWN HARRY!" Hermione urged, but he wasn't listening. A few minutes later they entered the Prefects bathroom, and Harry began looking around while Hermione watched.

"So you're really not from this world?" She asked. "But you know all of us. Or at least we were in your world?"

"Pretty much at one point or another." Harry said as he examined the sinks.

"Was I there?" She asked softly.

"Yeah." Harry said, only half listening.

"Were we friends?" She asked.

Harry stood up and looked at her with a soft smile. "We spoke maybe twice that I can remember. You were in Ravenclaw, and looked a little different. Your hair was a frightful mess, and you didn't seem to know how to get it to cooperate. Just a big mass of bushiness. And you had really big front teeth. You were top of the class in almost everything, except Defense. We weren't friends, but I'd say we were friendly." He replied.

"Did I survive the war?" She asked hesitantly. Harry's smile fell a bit as he thought.

"To be completely honest I don't know." He said slowly. "When it was all over, I was pretty overcome by grief, and I don't know who survived outside of the people who mattered the most to me. I don't even know if you fought in the last battle or if you escaped with the others. I'm sorry."

Hermione took this in and nodded her understanding and Harry went back to his search. Hermione decided that she wanted to believe that not only did her doppelganger fight, but she lived as well, and right now she was in the arms of someone who loved her deeply.

"Well, there's no symbol or anything here." Harry sighed in frustration. "I just…"

And then he saw the taps in the large swimming pool sized bathtub.

"Harry?" Hermione asked as Harry stepped into the tub and approached the center where all the taps were, a smile growing on his face. He began examining each and after only a few seconds smiled with triumph and waved his companion over.

"It's here." He smiled. Hermione came and looked at the particular tap with intense scrutiny.

"There's nothing there." She said. Just a little scratch.

"You don't see it?" He asked with surprise as he bent to examine it again, seeing the engraved serpent on the underside of the tap.

"No. Are you sure it's there?" Hermione looked at him with confusion.

Harry cleared his throat and spoke in Parselmouth for the faucet to open. Hermione's eyes went wide and she began to back away.

"You-you speak Paseltongue?" She asked in horror. Harry sighed and looked at her as calmly as he could, just as the faucet began to pour water into the tub, soaking their shoes.

"Hermione." He began offering her his hand. "I swear to you on my life, that I am not some evil monster. When Voldemort tried to kill me as a baby my mother sacrificed herself to protect me. When he tried to kill me it spilt his already fragile soul and part of it landed in me, and gave me some of his abilities. Trust me when I tell you that Parseltongue isn't bad. It's like anything else. It's how it's used that makes it good or bad."

The water was rising fast and Hermione started for the side of the tub when there came a grating sound, like stone grinding against stone. She looked back to Harry with fear in her eyes, but Harry seemed somewhat pleased. He looked at her and waved her over to him, but she hesitated. Harry closed the gap between them taking her hand in his and smiling softly.

"It's gonna be ok, I promise." He said.

Just then they felt the floor shift under their feet and they both fell into the water getting completely soaked. The water was swirling and Harry realized that the drain in the tub had opened wide. All at once the water and Harry and Hermione went swooshing into the black of the drain. Hermione shrieked with fear and held tightly to Harry as they twisted turns and spun downward.

They finally stopped with a huge splash in what turned out to be a pool of some sort. They were both able to stand easily and Harry was grinning.

"That was way more fun than in my world." Harry remarked, slipping his wand out. He lit the tip and found Hermione coughing and spluttering.

"You alright?" he asked.

"Do I look alright?' She demanded. "I'm soaking wet, I have no idea where we are, and I feel like you're kidnapping me."

"Seriously, you didn't think that was even a little fun?" he asked pointing to where water was still spilling down.

"Harry, we could be in a sewer!" Hermione snapped, turning to look for a way out. Harry simply chuckled and followed Hermione. They quickly found the edge of the pool and climbed out. Harry used his wand and dried Hermione off and then himself before relighting his wand as Hermione did the same.

"Where do you think we are?" She asked hesitantly, happy to be dry once again, though now she was beginning to feel afraid.

"Well, best guess is we're outside the Chamber of Secrets now. There will likely be a door around here somewhere." Harry said leading them further from the pool.

"Harry I don't like this. Wouldn't it be better to bring professor Dumbledore down here?" Hermione asked shakily.

"If I believed he was capable, then yeah." Harry stated.

"What do you mean by that?" The girl asked, stopping dead in her tracks.

Harry stopped and turned, his wand lighting her face in a way that made Harry's breath catch. He shook it off quickly and sighed.

"Hermione, I know that I'm new to this world, and I don't know everything about it. Not even remotely close. But what I do know is that Dumbledore left far too much to chance when he had Bellatrix Black."

"Bellatrix Black was captured?" Hermione asked wide eyed. "Dumbledore caught her?"

"No. I did." Harry said turning around and beginning to walk again. "I brought her down at Ginny Weasley's birthday party when she tried to kill Minister Bones."

"I never heard about any of that!" Hermione said quickly." Ronald would have said something for sure. He can't keep a secret at all."

"Unless he was ordered not to for national security." Harry remarked.

"Even then I don't think he would be able to hold his tongue." Hermione added.

"Oh my god." Harry stated, and Hermione came up close behind him to look over his shoulder.

"Oh my gods!"

In front of them was a giant round door. Set upon the door and looking menacing was a large metal serpent's face with jeweled green eyes. Harry could have easily stood in the mouth and had plenty of head room.

"I hope that's not what's inside." Hermione said softly.

"Don't worry, I

M pretty sure that it won't come unless it's called for." And I have a plan. With you here, it'll be much easier."

"Still not instilling me with a lot of confidence Harry." Hermione said and Harry shook his head with a soft chuckle.

"You know, you're proving to be a very difficult person to impress." He smirked. Hermione swatted his arm and scowled.

"Don't be a prat." She snapped.

"Open." Harry hissed in parse tongue, and there was a thunderous clank, followed by the grinding of metal across stone. An opening within the serpent's head was revealed. When the sound stopped, Harry, followed by Hermione slipped through into a vast chamber that felt all too familiar to Harry.

"Illuminate." Harry hissed again and thirteen torches came to life revealing a wide circular room with a carved marble bust of a man's face, just as Harry remembered it from his world.

"Hermione, welcome to the Chamber of Secrets." Harry said softly. Hermione stepped forward her eyes wide in awe of the infamous mythical chamber. And then her face fell and she turned back to look at Harry.

"This is it?" She asked looking disappointed."

"Well what did you expect?' Harry asked with a small smile.

"I don't know." She shrugged, looking around again. "More. Books, scrolls, gems… just more. Why did you come down here? It can't only be to fight the monster."

"Supposedly Salazar Slytherin had a sword that was a twin to Godric Gryffindor's. Goblin made, and if it's even close to the one from my world, it may be one of the few things that can destroy a Horcrux."

"A what?' The young witch asked.

"I'll explain that later. Right now, we have to find the sword, and potentially fight off some sort of beast." Harry said stepping around Hermione and walking towards the face of the ancient wizard.

"Accio Slytherin's sword." Harry said, flicking his wand. He waited for a few moments, but heard nothing to indicate the sword was on its way. He glanced at Hermione who was giving him a look of incredulity and he couldn't help but shrug.

"I guess we do it the old fashioned way."

The two began a careful examination of the main chamber. There were two alcoves on wither side of the giant bust, with two passages as well. As they walked around, Harry noticed in the center of the room several concentric circles. With smaller circles, like a map of the galaxy on the floor. Harry wondered if this Slytherin had had an affinity for astronomy.

Harry then wondered idly if the sword might just reveal itself if he just asked it too.

"Show me Slytherin's sword." He said half jokingly in Parselmouth.

Hermione cringed at the hissing sound coming from Harry's mouth, but jumped in fright when right in front of her, a circle on the floor opened and a circular pedestal rose, topped with a glass case wherein rested a gleaming silver sword.

"Oh my gods." She whispered as Harry came over looking truly impressed.

The sword was a rapier, with a serpent engraved into the guard. A giant gleaming emerald rested in the pommel. Where the grip met the pommel four stones were set. A sapphire, a ruby, a yellow pearl, and another emerald.

"That is beautiful." Hermione said reverently.

"It is." Harry agreed.

Hermione began to reach for the glass but Harry stopped her by gently grabbing her wrist.

"As soon as we try and take it, whatever is down here is going to come for it." he warned.

"Couldn't you just order it to stay back?" Hermione asked.

"Possibly. But if it's a basilisk, I need it. I need the venom on that blade." Harry said, looking at the bust of Salazar Slytherin, knowing in his heart the basilisk was there waiting.

"Can you conjure a rooster?" He asked Hermione.

"I think so." Hermione said.

"Could you try? We'll need it to crow in order to kill it." Harry explained. Hermione thought for a moment before conjuring a rooster which flapped its wings and clucked.

"Well, that makes things much easier. "Harry said, and Hermione could see the boy relax slightly. "Ok, I need you to take Cluckers here, and head into the passageway. The one we came into. Don't let it crow until I've managed to stab the sword into the snake's mouth."

"What?" Hermione asked looking terrified. "Harry, you'll get killed!"

"No I won't." Harry replied. "Not if I do this right. The Basilisk is going to come out of Slytherin's mouth…"

"And you're going to die when it looks at you Harry!" Hermione pleaded.

"No it won't." Harry smiled, and then conjured twenty large black ravens which all settled in a row behind Harry cawing loudly.

"They'll attack its eyes." Harry explained.

"Then I can make the rooster crow and it'll kill it. Then you can take the venom!" Hermione said brightly. Harry looked taken aback.

"I didn't think of that."

"What were you going to do?" Hermione asked.

"Lure it towards me and… you know what, you're plan is better." Harry said and Hermione looked horrified at him but he prevented her from speaking by turning her around.

"Take Cluckers and go."

"His name is not Cluckers!" She snarled as she bent and picked up the rooster. Harry shook his head and stood himself next to the sword case. He glanced over his shoulder to make sure Hermione was out of harm's way and then made several practice attempts to knock the glass case onto the floor and bending to pick up the pretend sword. When he felt he was ready he took a few calming breaths, and then pushed the case onto the stone floor shattering the crystal glass and freeing the sword. Harry bent and picked up the rapier, marveling at how light it felt and stood to face the monster that would soon emerge from Salazar's statue. He could actually feel the stone grinding open under his feet.

But to his surprise, the statue remained closed.

"HARRY, BEHIND YOU!"

Harry tuned and found he was staring at the back of a great serpents head as it rose from beneath the floor from the center of the room.

"EYES!" Harry shouted, and the crows took to the air, cawing madly as they struck out at the beast. The Basilisk, for that's what it was, roared with agony and thrashed about as it continued out of its lair. The giant head swung about and hit Harry full force, knocking him clear across the room. Harry lost his grip on the blade which clattered loudly. The crows, having done their job took off, vanishing as Harry lost focus. The beast came at Harry, being drawn to his groans, and smelling him in the air with its giant black tongue.

"The rooster Hermione!" Harry called out.

He rolled to the right as the serpent lunged, cracking it's skull on the stone chamber wall. Harry got to his feet and scrambled away. The serpent followed the sound of his feet on the stone.

"Hermione!" Harry shouted.

"He won't crow!" She shouted back.

"Focus Hermione! You've got to make it crow!"

The serpent lunged again and Harry was knocked hard in the back by the side of the beast's upper jaw. Something tore into Harry's back and he shrieked with pain. The Serpent recoiled and prepared for another attack as Harry hissed and groaned, trying to get back on his feet. He looked up and saw the sword in front of him and scrambled on all fours, snatching it up as the beast gave a loud hiss of triumph. Harry rolled, aiming the sword straight out in front of him as the giant serpent's head soared at him like a missile.

There was a loud echoing crow and the serpent reared back in distress. Another crow followed and the Serpent rolled and coiled in on itself and then, with the third crow, it fell limp, a loud hissing exhale of foul breath was expelled from deep within.

"Harry?" Hermione called. "Harry is it dead?"

"You did it!" Harry replied, climbing shakily to his feet and approaching the dead serpent. Harry went to its mouth and after a moment's inspection, drove the sword into a large sac where He thought the venom would be. He was rewarded when he pulled the blade free to find it coated with a yellowish clear thick fluid.

He turned at the approaching footsteps and found his vision becoming blurred.

"Oh shit." he muttered, and wobbled.

"Harry?" Hermione asked with fear.

"I think its fang got my back." Harry said as he started to fall. Hermione grabbed him to prevent him going face first onto the dead serpent's exposed fang.

"Harry?" Hermione called, but she was sounding further and further away. "Harry are you… what should I do?"

Help me." Harry tried to say as everything began to get dark.


	12. Chapter 12

12.

"As you know a single drop of Basilisk venom is enough to kill any normal person, but Mister Potter managed to hold on long enough until I could get Rigel to cry on the wound. It was as if he has some sort of tolerance to the venom. As if he'd been infected before." Madam Pomfrey explained to the anxious four.

"Thank you Poppy." Dumbledore sighed and the matron nodded, going to look on her patient who was being kept company by the young woman who'd been found with him. Dumbledore found himself staring at the young man, a flurry of emotions swirling in his chest.

"I knew it." Lily said, fighting back tears as she looked at Harry suspended above a bed in a harness to keep him off his back. "I knew it. I warned you all. He's suicidal, and you all just keep pushing him…"

"Lily, come on." Sirius tried but Lily held up her hand, her face hard. Sirius actually took a step back.

"Did he tell you that he'd faced a Basilisk before?" Lily asked. "Did he tell any of you? He told me and Minerva. He knew what was down there and he went anyway. He didn't ask any of us to help him. He went down there to die."

"Then why did he bring the girl down with him?" Remus asked.

"I have no idea Remus." Lily admitted. "Maybe so that we'd still have the sword? Maybe so someone could tell us where he was? You heard her story. He made sure that she would have the ability to kill that thing and get help. He could have conjured the rooster himself. She said he was able to control twenty ravens to peck out the eyes of the snake. He could have gotten a rooster to crow. So I ask you, why do you think he took her down with him?"

"That actually makes sense." Sirius sighed wearily. "Damn it! I thought he was getting better. We talked about that girl all day when we were at the Gaunt shack. I thought he'd found a reason to live, you know. Or at least he was starting to get over everything."

"He hasn't even started to deal with any of his pain Sirius!" Lily snapped. "And now it's killing him."

"It was very irresponsible of him to take her down there instead of one of us." Dumbledore chided and Lily scoffed.

"And why would he do that?" Lily hissed. "We had just proven we couldn't keep a dangerous woman locked up. What use would we have been to him down there in his opinion, do you think? We have to be smarter! We have to help him Albus! We have to fight this war on our own!"

"What are you saying Lily?" Sirius asked cautiously.

"Maybe it would be better for Harry to stay here in school. We can get him if we need his help to find Horcruxes, but in the meantime, maybe it would be for the best if he remained here. Somewhere where he can be around people his age, and maybe heal."

"I don't know if that is a good idea." Dumbledore said hesitantly as he looked over his shoulder. Lily and Sirius didn't see it, but Remus noticed the Headmaster's face shrivel in antipathy. The wolf Animagus made a mental note of it, but said nothing.

"Do you want him to get killed Albus?" Lily snapped, her eyes flaring in rage. "Because that's what's going to happen. If he's allowed to continue out there, he will find a way to get himself killed. Maybe if he's here, and he makes some friends, maybe he'll see that he's not alone. He's told all of us that he wants to have a life. A family… Maybe he'll connect to people and he'll start to heal and start working towards those things."

"Lily's right." Sirius nodded. "I don't think the kid really wants to die, or he would have gone into the chamber alone. We're lucky he ran into that girl. He's got a connection to her. He didn't just bring her down there for no reason. Maybe if he's around her more, and maybe if he starts meeting other people he'll come around. He kept telling me the other day that he wants a life outside of fighting. We need to give him that chance. We're responsible for him."

Dumbledore looked at all three faces and knew that there was no changing their minds. And in truth they were not wrong. They had brought the poor boy here to there world and put him in the center of their problems. He was their responsibility. However, Dumbledore still felt it would be better to keep the boy separated. In his heart he felt the boy was dangerous. He felt as if Harry Potter wasn't being entirely truthful with them, and that he needed to keep his eyes on the boy. He didn't wish to be fooled again, the way Voldemort had done.

"Very well, I shall make arrangements for Mister Potter to stay in the castle." Dumbledore conceded.

* * *

He could see her in the distance, looking just as he remembered her. She stood with others he knew and his heart swelled at the sight of them. He ran to them, anxious to feel their arms around him. To hear their voices. But no matter how fast he ran, they remained distant.

He stopped running, confusion on his face, and he called out to them. They all turned to look at him and to his horror they all appeared disappointed in him. His friends, his family. They all looked ashamed of him, and his heart sank.

"Please!" he cried. "Please I miss you all so much!"

"Than why do you dishonor our sacrifices?" They all spoke as one, and he felt the impact of their words, and he fell to his knees, tears spilling from his eyes.

"Harry?"

It was a new voice, coming from some where far away.

"Harry?"

Light fingers touched his face, and wiped at his tears. The voice kept calling him, soothingly, yet with worry.

He became aware of a dull burning like pain in his back, but he couldn't feel anything else, save for those gentle fingers on his face. No, that wasn't true. Someone was holding his hand as well.

Slowly he began to open his eyes and found himself looking into deep dark brown pools. Hermione gave him the softest most relieved smile he'd ever seen in his life, and it gave him a severe pang of guilt.

"Where am I? He croaked, and coughed. His throat felt as if it was swollen closed, and swallowing was extremely painful.

"Shh." She said calmly. She bent and brought up a cup with a long straw that she placed at his lips. "Just a little."

Harry had never tasted water so sweet. His parched mouth and cracked lips soaked up the moisture, and the swelling in his throat eased microscopically.

"You're in the infirmary." Hermione said as she gave him another soft smile. "You gave me such a fright. I thought you had died."

Harry suddenly found it hard to look her in the eye.

"I didn't know what to do. All I could think of was to send a Patronus for help." She said.

"You know how to do a Patronus?" Harry looked up intrigued.

"Yeah." Hermione shrugged. "I wanted to do it when I learned about it in third year. Took me three years to get it right. But I'm not sure I could actually do it if I were faced with Dementors. But thankfully it worked that night. Dumbledore and these other people showed up and I told them what happened. They were really worried about you. So was I."

"How long have I been out?" Harry wondered.

"Two days." She sighed, giving his hand a squeeze. "I was sure you were going to die, but Madam Pomfrey got her Phoenix Rigel to cry on your wound. I didn't even know she had a phoenix. She said it had bonded to her family line for three generations. I didn't even know they bonded. Hardly anyone knows about them. They're really rare, and now I'm realizing that I'm babbling."

"It's alright." Harry started to smile, but wince with pain.

"Do you need help?" Hermione asked but he shook his head.

"Harry I've got to know why you brought me down there with you." She said after a short silence. "I saw you conjure those Ravens. You didn't need me to conjure a rooster. And you clearly knew what you were doing. I still don't understand why you didn't bring someone more capable with you. If not Dumbledore, then one of the other people who showed up."

"Maybe I was just trying to impress you." Harry tried, jokingly. "You know take you on a date you'd never forget?"

"If that's your idea of a good time, then I don't think I want to go on anymore dates with you." Hermione replied with a small chuckle, though her expression immediately turned to one of concern.

"I overheard your friends speaking to Dumbledore. The woman, Lily? She thinks that you're hurting, and that you're trying to kill yourself."

Harry's expression fell and again he couldn't look her in the eyes. Hermione squeezed his hand and she reached up and brushed some of her hair over her ear.

"Why?" Was all she asked.

Harry didn't say anything for a long time, and even pulled his hand from hers. Hermione remained standing at his side.

"Harry, you told me that night about some of the things you'd seen and done, and I get it. You lost people you care about. I'm truly sorry for that. I know there's nothing I can say or do that will make the pain any less. But if all those people you cared about died to help you, to protect you, how do you think they'd feel about what you tried to do? If I sacrificed myself to make sure you lived, I'd be ashamed of you now."

"I'm tired." Harry said sullenly. "I think I'd like to go to sleep."

Hermione felt her heartbreak and knew that he wanted to be alone. She realized he already knew what she had told him. For now she felt the best thing would be to give him his space.

"Okay." She said reaching up and squeezing his shoulder. "I'll give you some time. But I'll come back later. I don't abandon the people I care about Harry Potter."

Hermione made her way to Gryffindor Tower and went to her bed. Everyone else was in class at the moment so it was very quiet at the moment. It gave Hermione a chance to reflect on the last two days. There was no questioning that it had been the most dangerous and confusing two days of her life. Starting with Harry Potter coming out of a girl's bathroom. Actually, it was really learning that Professor McGonagall knew Harry.

Still she hadn't expected to see Harry and then there he was, right when she had been thinking about him. Following that had been his hour or so of honest forthcoming. He had told her a lot about himself. Clearly he was over compensating for being so vague before, but it had been far too much to process in the moment. Looking back now, it was almost like Harry wanted her to know who he had been after he was gone. And that made Hermione very sad.

She had a chance to reflect on his story while she had sat with him. Which was stunning to her that she'd been allowed to remain at Harry's side. The woman, Lily, if Hermione remembered correctly, had insisted she be allowed to remain. She had told Hermione that it was important that he not be alone when he woke up. So she had sat with him, holding his hand and thinking about him. She had to eat in the Great Hall, and sleep in her own bed, but any other time, she was there. Thinking over everything she had learned about him.

And that was how she had come to the conclusion that Harry Potter had tried to kill himself. She really wasn't sure if it had been planned or not, but she was positive of the outcome he had been trying to achieve. She also didn't understand why he had brought her down into the chamber with her. The only thing she could come up with was that in the deepest part of his heart, he truly didn't want to die.

So why had he reached out to her? Why not one of the three adults who had been with Dumbledore who seemed to care for him so much? And the only answer she had was the most ridiculous one she could think of. The stupid soul mate thing.

Hermione felt that she was beginning to understand how the whole thing worked. A soul mate did not equate love. Especially since she definitely did not love Harry. Sure, he was attractive, and she had been thinking of him a lot, but she also knew that she didn't love him. But she also couldn't deny that she had enjoyed being near him, even when they had been in a life and death situation.

And that was another thing. Harry had made sure that no matter what, she would be safe in the end. He had made her get out of the way and given her the one thing that would kill the beast instantly. Short of leaving her out of the whole thing entirely, that was pretty much the safest she could have been. He had at least thought enough about what he intended to do to make sure she would be alive when it was over. And she also realized he had come up with that part of the plan after they had started looking together. After he had started to reach out to her for help.

Hermione lay down on her bed, folding her hands on her chest and closing her eyes. She wondered idly what might be going on in Harry's head and his heart. Did he truly want to live, or was he now so determined to be reunited with those he lost that he couldn't be helped. That he didn't want to be helped.

That thought actually made Hermione begin to cry. She had only just met him, and yet she felt like he was important to her. Maybe they would be married one day, or maybe they were just going to be the very best of friends. Maybe he would be the brother she never had… whatever it was, she didn't want to let it go.

"Stupid soul mate!" She huffed.

* * *

The next morning Hermione awoke and got her day started with a shower before gathering her things for classes. She knew that she was going to check in on Harry at some point that day. She hoped he'd be in better spirits and that he might be a bit more willing to talk to her. She didn't want to push him, but she was truly worried for him.

When she was dressed, and had her things together, she headed down to the Great Hall for an early breakfast. She figured if she ate quickly she might have some time to see Harry before Transfiguration. When she arrived, she found it was nearly empty, which wasn't a surprise this early in the morning, but she was a little shocked to find Padma there along with Luna Lovegood, a sixth year Ravenclaw with very long wavy dirty blonde hair and bright blue eyes.

"What are you two doing up so early?" Hermione asked when she got close enough.

"Padma wants to meet your boyfriend." Luna said with a dreamy smile.

"He's not my boyfriend." Hermione countered quickly.

"Yet, you've barely left his side since he got hurt. You've only been here to eat and you've barely done that." Padma pointed out.

"That doesn't make him my boyfriend."

"Is he a boy?" Luna asked.

"Well, yes…" Hermione replied looking confused.

"And he is your friend, right?" The blonde girl added.

"Yeah" Hermione said beginning to catch on.

"Then clearly he's your…" Luna and Padma started but Hermione cut them off.

"He's not my boyfriend, alright?" She snapped. "He's my friend and he's going through a lot right now. I'm not just talking about how he got hurt either."

"What do you mean?" Padma asked.

Hermione hesitated. She had been advised by McGonagall not to talk about Harry too much. Given what she now knew, she felt that was a very wise idea. Yet these girls were her friends, and she trusted them. Besides, they might have ideas on how to get through to Harry that she hadn't thought of. And so long as she didn't reveal too much, she felt it would be okay.

"Well, he recently lost a lot of people he cared about." She started. "He's in a lot of pain emotionally, and I don't think he knows how to deal with it. I think he tried to kill himself."

"Oh my gods!" Padma said, her hands going to her mouth in horror. Luna sat up a bit straighter and leaned in, looking as if her own heart was breaking. Hermione realized that Luna may be the one who could understand what Harry was feeling as her own mother had committed suicide when she had been nine.

"Do you know how it happened?" Padma asked. "I mean, do you know how he lost all of them? Was it because of Voldemort?"

Hermione hesitated but then she began to nod.

"Apparently, they all died protecting him in some way. His parents, then his godfather, his friends. All died to protect him against someone bad. From what he told me that person is dead now too, but Harry's alone, and he's filled with guilt and he's lonely, and everyone he's ever cared about is gone. And I'm not sure, but I feel like the other night he wanted to die, but then I ran into him and maybe part of him didn't want to actually do it, and having me there, that part of him fought a little harder to not die." Hermione explained.

"You may be right." Luna agreed. "Sometimes people who are in that much pain and see only one solution to it will reach out in really unexpected ways, and sometimes to the people you would least expect. From what you told us the other day, you had only seen him twice before?"

"Yeah." Hermione nodded. "When we met in Diagon Alley, and then again just a little bit before the term started.

"Sounds like he connected with you enough that he felt on some level that you might help him." Padma agreed with Luna's assessment.

"I just wish I knew how to help him." Hermione sighed. "When I asked him about it yesterday, he just sort of shut down."

"Try asking about the people he lost." Luna said. Hermione and Padma looked at her and she smiled her patent dreamlike smile. "When I was seeing a mind healer after my mum died, she told me that talking about her would help me. Not the bad stuff. But all the good memories. Try getting him to tell you stories about some of the people, and it might open him up and allow him to process some of his pain. It worked for me and papa."

"That's actually a really good idea." Hermione said happily. "Thank you Luna."

"I hope it helps." Luna smiled. "When can we meet him?"

"I…" Hermione started.

"Yeah I want to meet him." Padma whined. "I want to meet the guy who was able to distract you from schoolwork. Because that's some really powerful magic."

"Shut up." Hermione rolled her eyes.

* * *

Harry awoke with a heaviness in his heart. He stared up at the ceiling, thankful that he was no long in the strange harness. Though his back still burned, it was tolerable. Madam Pomfrey was pleased by the speed of his recovery, and seemed confident that he would be released in two or three days. Harry was eager to get out of the infirmary and back on the trail for the horcruxes.

However at the moment, Harry was feeling extremely guilty. He felt horrible for dragging Hermione into the Chamber of Secrets with him when he really should have taken Sirius or Remus, or even Lily. This poor girl, who Harry was growing fond of, hadn't been prepared for what they had ultimately faced. If she had died, or even been hurt, it would have been truly his fault. That was something Harry couldn't stomach.

There was also the recurring dream he was having. He could see all the people who had mattered most to him. The people he'd known in his world who had all died protecting him in some way and how disappointed they looked at him. The way they kept their distance from him no matter how hard he tried to get close to them. Sirius, Remus, Draco, Daphne, Ginny, Nymphadora, and his mother and father all looking at him with dissatisfaction.

He had upset them. He had been careless and stupid in his attempt and they were not happy at all. They had to understand though. They had to know how deeply he missed all of them, and how hard it was to not have them in his life anymore. Yes this world had close facsimiles but they weren't the people who had known him and loved him. They were pale comparisons. They weren't real.

Harry sighed and turned his head when he heard the door open. At the sight of her, Harry's heart dropped. Why was this girl so damned nice to him. She should hate him. She should want to be as far away from him as she could be. Yet, here she came, smiling at him with those stunning brown eyes shining so brightly.

"Good morning." Hermione said coming to his bedside and sitting in the chair next to it. "You're looking much better than when I left yesterday. You've got some color back in your cheeks."

She smiled sweetly at him and he felt terribly guilty under the gaze of those sweet chocolate brown eyes. He started to turn away from her, but she stopped him.

"Are we not friends anymore?" She asked quickly. He turned back to look at her and his heart sank at the hurt look in her eyes. "I know it wasn't my place to tell you how you should run your life, and I know that I didn't know any of the people you lost, so it's probably presumptious of me to say how they might feel about your choices. But I only said those things because I care."

"You barely know me." Harry said, his voice low and his tone bewildered. "Why do you care about me at all?"

"Well, because when we first met, you spoke to me like, I don't know. It's hard to explain. Maybe because when I look into your eyes, I see the same loneliness I felt growing up. I had a real hard time making friends when I was young. My mother and father were always very busy with their work, and we never really connected. That got worse when they found out I was a witch. Don't get me wrong, I know they love me in their own way, and I know they want the best for me, but they don't understand me, and I don't know how to make them understand that I don't want the things they want for me." Hermione shook her head and gave a soft apologetic smile. "I'm getting off track. The point is that I care about you, and I want to help you if you'll let me."

Harry slumped a little and his eyes fell.

"Tell me about your best friend." Hermione said before Harry could reply. He looked up and her smile was infectious. Harry couldn't stop himself. He sat up a bit, mesmerized by that sweet smile.

"He was kind of a jerk when we met." Harry stammered. "we were all waiting to be sorted, and this little ponce with slicked back blonde hair was staring at everyone like he was better than everyone. He," Harry began to chuckle. "He says really loud so everyone could hear that it was true that Harry Potter had come to Hogwarts, and then tried to make this whole show about making an alliance, but when he came forward, offering his hand, he tripped on his robes, and fell face first in front of me. Everyone laughed, and he got really angry. After that, he felt like I had slighted him or something. Anyway, that first year, he took every opportunity to make me look stupid, and it usually backfired."

Hermione folded her hands in her lap as she listened, thinking that she was going to buy Luna a huge bag of sweets in Hogsmeade next time she was there. Ther girl was a genius for sure.

"On the train ride home, he came to give me more grief, but I stopped him, and asked him why he'd been such a shit all year. Ginny also wanted to know why he was so arrogant. Somehow, we got him to open up. I'm not even sure I remember what I said to him, but it turned out we weren't that different. My Aunt hated me, and his father was disappointed by him. The next year, we started hanging out, and more and more we just bonded. Draco and I…"

"Wait," Hermione held up her hand to stop him. "Draco? As in Draco Malfoy? He was your best friend?"

"Yeah." Harry nodded. " Yeah, and before you say anything, I know that the one in this world is a very pale comparison to the guy I knew. I was told about him."

Hermione still looked shocked and Harry looked away from her as he thought of his best mate.

But to be fair, Draco wasn't my best friend. He and I were close, no doubt, and the only time we ever really got into it was on the Quidditch pitch. But it was all in good fun. No, My very best friend had to be Ginny. From the moment we met, I knew she was special." Harry smiled softly as he stared into the distance. Hermione noticedhow his eyes lost focus and his hand began trembling in his lap.

"She was terrified of going to Hogwarts. Her older brothers had convinced her she would have to fight something terrible during the sorting and she didn't think she'd be able to. She and her twin had been fighting, and she found me all alone in a cabin on the train. She asked if she could sit with me, and we just talked and laughed, and she didn't stare at my scar like everyone on the platform had. She knew exactly who I was, but she told me later on that I looked just as afraid as she had felt."

"she sounds nice." Hermione said softly, urging him to continue.

"She could be." Harry recalled. "She could be the sweetest most caring girl you'd have ever had the pleasure to meet. Or, she could be downright scary if properly antagonized. "I don't know where she learned it, and she refused to teach it to me, but she had a particular hex that she wouldn't hesitate to use on someone who had really ticked her off. Her infamous bat-bogey hex."

"oh my!" Hermione reeled. "Bat bogey hex? What is it? Do your bogeys become bats, or do…"

"Yeah, pretty much." Harry nodded with a smirk. "And they fly our of your nose and attack you. Really painful if they bite you, and really messy too. But when she laughed after she'd cast it, gods, it was the single most frightening sound anyone had ever heard."

She sounds pretty amazing.

Harry nodded.

"She was my first kiss." He said, losing himself to memories. "I was going on a date with Cho Chang. I had this stupid crush on her, and I had finally asked her out, and I was nervous about the whole thing, and Ginny kept telling me that there was nothing to be nervous about, and then I told her that I didn't even… I had never kissed a girl before, and Ginny… she just laughed and grabbed my head and kissed me. I was so shocked, I didn't know what to do. It was amazing really, but I was so… just blown away by it, I couldn't think straight. Then she lets me go and grins like the cat who got the canary and says 'There, you've kissed a girl, now get out there and show Cho Chang that you're everything she's ever wanted in a boyfriend!'"

Hermione couldn't help but giggle at the story. "So did you do what she told you to?"

"No." Harry shook his head his smile fading. "No. Cho was only dating me because I was the last person who saw he old boyfriend Cedric Diggory alive. That date ended very badly, and Cho ended up leaving Hogwarts after that. It wasn't long after that I figured out that I really had feelings for Ginny."

Harry's face began to shrivel and his hands balled into fists. "I had so many opportunities to tell her, and I was always too afraid. Too worried about what ifs. And then when she was looking at me I saw it in her eyes that she knew. She had always known, and we could have had so much time together, and he took her from me."

And all at once Harry Potter broke down and began to cry for the loss of the girl he'd loved. Hermione reached out quickly and took his hand in hers, and he grasped it like it was a lifeline as he began to drown in his sorrow. Hermione felt her own heart break and found herself climbing onto the bed with him, and enfolding him into her arms. She ran her fingers through his hair, and held him as he clutched at her arms as tears fell, and his pain shook his entire body.

Madam Pomfrey had heard the boy's sobs and had come out of her office to check on him, but stopped when she saw Miss Granger encircle him and hold him as he cried. Her phoenix began to sing softly, and Madam Pomfrey turned to look at her faithful familiar, knowing in her heart that this was one time phoenix song would not be able to give comfort.

* * *

Albus Dumbledore could not remember ever feeling so torn. Not even when he had to decide whether to face his former lover Gellert Grindewald in a duel to stop his reign of terror. Dumbledore still saw Gellert's face in his dreams, begging for mercy before Dumbledore ended his life.

The old headmaster sat at his desk in his office with his fingers steepled as he stared into the basin that was his pensieve. Swirling inside was the silvery shimmering memories. He had reviewed them several times now, and he was becoming more and more convinced that Harry potter was a very dangerous individual.

He had reviewed first the duel Harry had had with Sirius Black within the Great Hall. The boy was quick, powerful, and ferocious in his combat. He also had no honor in his dueling. The world in which the boy came from clearly had no regard for honor or respect for one's foe.

More concerning to Dumbledore however was Potter's ability to twist people with his words. Others were clearly enchanted by potter's charisma, but Dumbledore was beginning to recognize how manipulative the boy could be. He had convinced that Minister of Magic that she would become a dictator in order to defeat Voldemort. The boy had also convinced an innocent girl to accompany him into a dangerous place where Dumbledore was sure he had wished to use her as bait. Though the girl told them how Harry had insisted she wait in a corridor away from the danger, Dumbledore was sure it had been part of a more devious plan.

Worst of all was how the boy had somehow wrapped Lily Potter around his finger. Likely playing on her broken heart, Potter had manipulated the woman into thinking he was somehow lost and broken, and now she wanted him to remain within the school where he could dig his claws into others.

And Dumbledore had agreed because Lily had been correct. They had brought the boy into this world, and they were responsible for him. That meant that since he could no longer trust the others to be impartial, Dumbledore was going to have to be the one to watch the boy, and make sure he didn't corrupt anyone else. The boy was a danger, and it looked as though only the headmaster recognized that fact.

The question was how to keep the boy isolated without appearing as if that was what he was doing. Allowing the boy to join classes was out of the question. He could arrange for meals to be delivered to the boy's quarters, but there was no real way to keep him locked up. All he could do was try and limit the boy's exposure to the rest of the student body.

Dumbledore thought briefly of keeping the boy with him, but his day to day responsibilities would make that impossible. After a single day the boy would become so bored with the mundane daily grind of a school administrator he would blast the office apart for a small taste of freedom.

There wasn't much Dumbledore could do in order to keep the boy isolated. But he could have someone watch the boy and report on everything he did and said.

"Dobby?" Dumbledore called. In a flash a small creature with bat like ears, and bulbous tennis ball sized green eyes appeared and bowed before the Headmaster.

"Headmaster calls for Dobby?" The creature said in a high squeaky voice.

"Yes Dobby, I have a very special task for you." Dumbledore smiled.


	13. Chapter 13

13.

"Ah, Miss Granger, Please come in." Dumbledore said with a genial smile, waving his guest in. "Please sit down."

Hermione had never once been in the Headmaster's office during her time at Hogwarts. She'd never had a reason too. She'd never been in trouble which was the only reason the young witch could think for anyone to be called to the Headmaster's office. However, she wasn't a shocked that she had received the summons. She had been expecting to be spoken to for three days now, and had been quite surprised that she hadn't been booted out of school that night she'd sent her Patronus for help.

Now that she was here, she was positive that the formalities would be undertaken, and she would be going home very soon, though she deeply hoped that her record would be taken into account and she might just get off with a few hundred detentions rather than expelled.

"Would you care for a butterscotch?" Dumbledore asked politely, motioning to the tiny sweets bowl. Hermione shook her head in the negative and the Headmaster sat back with a warm smile. "I am sure you are wondering why I asked you here today. You've been an exemplary student in your seven years here, and as your Headmaster, I couldn't be prouder of your performance."

"Thank you sir." Hermione said clearing her throat. "But if we could just skip all the small talk and just tell me how bad my punishment will be?"

"Punishment?' Dumbledore cocked his head curiously

"Isn't that why I'm here, sir?" She asked, unable to stop the glint of hope from lacing her tone. "Because I was in the Chamber of Secrets with Harry, and he got hurt. I know that I should have stopped him. I should have tried to find a teacher sooner. I mean, here was this person in the castle who is definitely not a student, and I just…"

"Miss Granger," Dumbledore held up his hand to stop her. Hermione looked rather embarrassed but held the older man's eyes. "You are not going to be punished. Other than exercising questionable judgment, you did nothing wrong. In fact it is likely because of you that Mister Potter is alive now. And that is what I wished to speak to you about. Your relationship with Mister Potter. Professor McGonagall tells me that you are friendly with him?

"Yes, sir." Hermione confirmed though she was now very puzzled.

"I see." Dumbledore nodded and then fixed Hermione with a pointed look. "Then, may I ask when you first came to know Mister Potter?"

"I met him in Diagon Alley shortly before the start of term. He came up to me in Flourish and Blotts, and asked me to join him for ice cream." Hermione said, unable to stop herself from smiling at the memory of a cute boy coming to chat her up. It wasn't really the first time it had happened, but it was the best one so far.

Dumbledore however didn't look as pleased as he regarded the young witch. "And did you see him again, before that night in the castle?"

"Yes." Hermione nodded, becoming more intrigued by this line of questioning. "About a week before the start of term, though we had a sort of row. Sir, what is this about?"

Dumbledore leaned in, placing his arms on his desk, and steepling his fingers as he peered at Hermione who was obviously confused by this line of questioning.

"Miss Granger, I need you to understand first that I do not make it a habit of interfering in my students personal relationships." He began in a tone that suggested he had her best interests at heart. "Whom you choose to be involved with is up to you and you alone."

Hermione continued to stare at the Headmaster with bemusement.

"However in this case," Dumbledore continued, "I feel it necessary to ask you to refrain from further interactions with our mutual friend. There is much you don't know about his situation, and it could prove very dangerous for you. The events from the other night should be enough for you to understand why I say this to you."

"Sir, I don't… Are you trying to tell me that Harry is dangerous?" Hermione asked with obvious mystification.

"In a manner of speaking." Dumbledore nodded. He glanced around for a second before he fixed her with his most genuine look of concern. "What you must understand about Harry is…"

"I think you're mistaken sir." Hermione said quickly stopping Dumbledore from continuing.. "With all due respect, I don't think Harry is dangerous. He's a lot of things, Obstinate, impetuous, and not very forthcoming. But he's also sweet, selfless, and he's in a lot of pain because of what happened in his world. I think he's afraid too. Afraid of not being able to prevent what happened there from happening here as well. And besides, if he really was as dangerous as you believe, why would you allow him anywhere near Hogwarts. Why wouldn't you have sent him back from where he came as soon as you knew he was dangerous?"

"Forgive me Miss Granger, but you know that he's…" Dumbledore's eyebrows rose in surprise.

"That he's from a world like ours and you brought him here to fight Voldemort?" Hermione finished the question. "Yes. He told me. He told me about the war in his world, and how it was essentially the same here."

Dumbledore looked troubled at this revelation. "Miss Granger, while it is admirable that you wish to help an obviously troubled young man, you do not have all the facts. Mister Potter is capable of very ingenious methods of bending people to his will."

"I have enough sir. I'm aware that sometimes people can be disingenuous sir. But I don't believe that Harry is one of those people." Hermione protested.

"Which tells me that he already has you beguiled." Dumbledore replied. "Again, I must insist that you distance yourself from Mister Potter. For your own good."

Hermione was dumbstruck, stunned by the finality of Dumbledore's "advice". For some reason that Hermione couldn't figure out at the moment, the Headmaster did not want her to have any sort of interaction with her friend. This was something that was not sitting right with the young witch especially as she knew he was wrong about Harry.

On top of it, Hermione really thought it was best if Harry wasn't alone right now. He'd only just started opening up about what had happened in his world. He really needed a friend right now, and she wasn't about to abandon him. She wasn't even sure if she could. Though she couldn't confirm it, she was becoming more convinced that she and Harry were meant to be in each other's lives. She didn't know to what extent that was. Were they only meant to be friends? Or more? Or less? She didn't have anything even remotely close to an answer for that. She only knew that Harry was important to her.

The question was how to make the Headmaster understand that she wasn't going to abandon Harry, and no one was going to make her.

"Sir, may I ask you a question?" Hermione said softly. Dumbledore gave a nod, though he appeared as though he was not going to argue the matter of Harry Potter any further.

"What do you know about soul mates?" She queried. Dumbledore's face softened immediately. He seemed to relax in his chair as he beamed at her. Hermione guessed it was because she had changed the topic.

"There are a great many mysteries in magic, none more beautiful than the mystery of Love. It is one of the greatest and most tragic powers in the world. While I have never personally experienced or even witnessed anything to prove that two people's souls could actually call out for one another, that two people were meant for each other alone, I do believe that you could connect with someone so strongly that you could believe they are in fact your soul mate." Dumbledore smiled. "If it isn't to bold of me, may I ask why you're inquiring on this subject?"

"Because I think that Harry and I are supposed to be together." Hermione stated quickly. Dumbledore's face fell but Hermione pressed on. "I personally don't believe in such silly romantic ideas, but I can't deny that I've felt some pretty strange things since the end of July. And as it turns out, that was roughly around the time that Harry was brought here. It started like this feeling that I was supposed to be somewhere else. Everywhere I was, I felt that I needed to be someplace else, but I didn't know where. But then I met Harry, and that feeling went away, and I felt whole, as odd as that may sound. What was even weirder was that I had never felt that anything was missing in my life. Not until that night in July anyway. I don't know what any of it means, and I definitely don't know what is going to happen, or what Harry and I will be. But I do know that I can't abandon him. You said before that you don't normally interfere with personal relationships and that who I associate with is my business. I do appreciate that you're trying to protect me, but I think that you're mistaken about Harry."

Dumbledore's shoulders sagged slightly, and he sighed heavily. Hermione looked at the headmaster for a long moment before the man finally nodded with defeat and dismissed her. Hermione stood and quickly left the office. Dumbledore felt horrible now.

It is always difficult when one has to take a look at themselves and see that whatever is troubling them is internal. That was the conundrum that Albus Dumbledore faced now. While he still believed that Harry potter was dangerous, the old headmaster knew that the boy was not a threat to Miss Granger, or any of the other students. Nor was he a threat to anyone who believed in good. It was truly Voldemort and his followers who had anything to fear from Harry Potter.

So why had the old wizard convinced himself that the boy was dangerous? Was it the method in which he fought the Death Eaters? So ruthless, and cold, without honor? Or was it that the boy seemed to be twice the wizard Dumbledore himself had been at that age? Skills hardened by conflict and necessity. Or did Dumbledore's jealousy revolve around something more.

For many years, Dumbledore had been the one that Britain turned to for answers. Not just Britain, but the world. He had been a guiding light in the darkest of times. He'd helped to make their society better in so many ways. He, who had shown the magical world that without muggleborns to deepen the pools of magic, wizards could very well become extinct. Albus Dumbledore had been a beacon of hope and good and he had always known the best course of action.

But not anymore. He didn't have the answers. That was why he, in his most desperate hour, ripped a young man from his home in the vain hope that he could end the conflict that Dumbledore could not.

Dumbledore rose from his seat, and went to the window. He looked down at the grounds where snow was beginning to fall gently. There were many students out in it, running, and laughing and being young, completely ignorant to the evil that lay beyond the school. Dumbledore envied them badly.

He had been wrong. It was a mistake to try and isolate the boy. Harry had suffered far more than any single person should, and here he was trying to inflict more pain upon him because he had had his feelings hurt. And what if young Miss granger was right? What if she and Harry were meant to be? Trying to keep them apart would only make matters worse, and could end up getting one or both of them killed.

Dumbledore sighed as he watched the young at play. It was his duty to protect them from the violence that Voldemort intended to cause, and the best way to do that was to allow Harry to fight this war in the way he felt was best, giving him all the support he could muster. Afterwards, it was his responsibility to make sure that Harry could return to his world should he wish it, or make sure he had a chance at a good life here if he wanted to stay. He owed the boy that at the least. He would not hinder the young man, nor would he question his methods, so long as they did not place anyone else in danger. Perhaps if he worked with Harry instead of against him, the war could finally be ended.

* * *

In another part of the castle, Harry Potter was also staring out a window. He was standing in his new quarters, something similar to the room he'd been given when he first came here, though this one was larger. Harry guessed it was for special guests. Dignitaries and the like. Perhaps the OWL and NEWT contingent.

The quarters was divided into three rooms. A main living area, with a sofa and two chairs, along with a small table set before a small fireplace. A bedroom with a larger bed than was usually found in the dormitories and a wardrobe. And finally a bathroom.

Harry had been told that he could take his meals there if he wished, and Harry got the impression that Dumbledore would prefer it if he refrained from being seen by the students. Harry understood that his being seen would lead to far too many questions, and Harry understood that there were children of Death Eaters attending the school. Voldemort would eventually learn who he was and where he was, and that could put everyone in danger. Harry wasn't willing to put the school in peril again if he could help it.

It was for that reason he wanted to get into the school records as soon as possible. It had been one of the things discussed when the current arrangement had been made. Harry would stay at Hogwarts where he could have access to the student records as he was the only one who didn't have to be reminded of Voldemort's real identity. It was thought that Harry might be able to learn something about Voldemort that would help them to find his horcruxes. In the meantime, Remus, Lily and Sirius, under Harry's suggestion, would scour Little Hangleton for any sign of a horcrux. Harry was sure there was one there, though he wasn't sure where. Only that as it was where Voldemort's story began, it made sense that it was special to him. The other place Harry suggested was the place he had faced his first defeat. Godric's Hollow.

Harry decided that there was really no time like the present and headed for the door. He'd been ordered by Madam Pomfrey that he should take things easy for the next few days. He had been reluctantly released from her care, but his recovery had been nothing short of remarkable in her opinion. Still, she demanded that he visit her every other day so she could monitor him. A small price to pay for being allowed to escape the hospital wing.

As he opened the door, he got a start when he found Hermione standing there, her hand poised to knock on his door. She smiled brightly when she saw him, and Harry felt a wave of relaxation washed over him.

Her brown eyes brightened and he felt a pang in his heart. Harry was becoming more and more conflicted when it came to the very pretty witch. Physically, she was attractive. Of that there was no doubt in his mind. Tall, brunette, skin the color of cream. She was thin, but not unhealthy. Harry would have described her as having a ballet dancer's body, though she was a bit more pronounced in her chest.

But it wasn't her body that drew him to her. It was more her personality. There were things that reminded him of the girl he had loved in his world. Hermione had Ginny's tenacity, and her ability to see through Harry's bullshit. But Hermione was more logical than Ginny. Harry also thought that Hermione was much more empathic than Ginny. She knew he was hurting, just as Lily knew. But Hermione wasn't satisfied with allowing Harry to deal with things on his own. She had unfortunately witnessed first hand what his pain was doing to him. When he woke up in the hospital wing she had confronted him about it. It was clearly the wrong thing to do, and Hermione had admitted as much soon after. Yet she hadn't given up on him either. She had tackled the issue from a new angle, and just got him to talk about those he'd lost.

It had been truly cleansing. Harry was not under any illusion that he was over his losses, but he didn't feel as if he was under a heavy dark cloud.

He was also now struggling with some new feelings. He felt guilt when he thought of her. Guilt because he was supposed to love Ginny, and she had sacrificed herself for him. Yet, Hermione made him feel happy he was still alive so that he could know her. And that made him feel strange because he didn't want to rely on her or anyone else like some sort of potion to live. It was all very confusing, and Harry hated when his mind wandered into this mess. He really needed to focus on ending this world's Voldemort.

"Hermione, what are you doing here?" He asked surprised.

"I came to visit my friend." She replied. "And ask him a few questions. But it looks like you're going somewhere."

"Uh, yeah I am." Harry said. "But you could come along if you like. I could use the help."

"We're not going into another secret room to fight a dragon or something, are we?" Hermione asked cocking her head and giving him a expression of reluctance. Harry had to laugh as he shook his head.

"No I swear." He said with a small smile. "Just going to the school records."

"Oh." Hermione brightened. "In that case, I would love to come."

The two teens began heading towards Mister Filch's office in silence for a minute before Hermione looked at Harry with a worried expression.

"Did you and Dumbledore have a row?" She asked without preamble. Harry quickly looked at her, a moment of confusion on his face before it melted into one of acceptance.

"Several." Harry shrugged. "Let's just say that the Headmaster and I disagree on a number of matters. I think we both want the same thing, but we don't see eye to eye when it comes to how to accomplish those things. It doesn't matter though. The Minister seems to be agreeing with me if the paper is anything to go on."

"Martial Law?' Hermione asked. "That was your idea?"

"Sort of." Harry shrugged. "So long as the Ministry has Death Eaters and supporters of Voldemort infiltrating its ranks, they will be constantly sabotaged in their efforts. We all discussed ways to stop it from happening, and that was the best solution. Why are you asking about me and Dumbledore?"

"I just came from his office." She began. "He was pretty insistent that I stop speaking to you. He thinks you might be dangerous."

"Dangerous?" Harry asked, smirking. "Did he actually say that?"

Hermione nodded and Harry laughed again.

"Wow." He grimaced, reigning in his humor.

"Why would he say that?" Hermione pressed.

"Like I said, we see things differently. Dumbledore clearly wants to believe the best in people. It's a nice sentiment, but it isn't reality. There are just some people who don't want to be good. They want power, or wealth and will do anything to get it. And some… some people just want to burn the world to the ground. That's where this world is. And unfortunately to end this conflict, there needs to be someone who can see the world's darkness and be willing to fight it correctly. Maybe that's why he got me instead of another Harry Potter." Harry explained.

"You know I was thinking about that the other night, and it's so hard to fathom that there can be literally millions of different versions of someone. As you say you were the one, but it could have been someone so vile, so evil…" Hermione eyed him warily and Harry nodded his agreement.

"It could have been a me that never knew magic. One who was a coward, or one who just could care less and be unwilling at all to help just so he could see it all burn." Harry added.

"What about me?" Hermione said thoughtfully. Somewhere out there is a Hermione Granger who is everything I despise. A giggling, airhead who's never once opened a book, or had a single meaningful thought."

Hermione shivered and Harry chuckled. "I think it's best that you stop thinking about the infinite possibilities, and just try and be the best version of you you can be." He said and Hermione agreed with him.

They arrived at Filch's office, and Harry was slightly taken aback by the caretaker who stood to greet him. He was smiling. The man Harry had known had been a sour old squib who hated children. This man was genial, and polite. He claimed to have been expecting Harry, and showed him to the records room before bowing to both of them and leaving them to their task.

"So Voldemort was a student here?' Hermione looked intrigued.

"Yeah except he didn't go by Voldemort. His name was Tom Riddle. But the name is cursed and in like five minutes, you're going to forget all about it. In fact, I'm pretty sure I've told you this before."

"Interesting defense." Hermione said thoughtfully. "If no one can remember who you were, then they will believe you to be the god you want them to think you are, I suppose." Hermione noted.

"Here we go." Harry said pulling a file. "Wow, this Filch is far more organized then the one in my world. Ok, Tom Riddle was born in 1927, that's when it says his name showed up. You know I've always wondered how Hogwarts learns about magical children to be potential students."

There is a book in the Ministry that records magical births." Hermione stated as she read over Harry's shoulder. "Each spring the Ministry sends the names and current whereabouts of each child to the Deputy Headmistress."

Harry turned to her inqusitively. "And how does the Ministry know the whereabouts of every magical child?"

Hermione only shrugged. "I don't work there. I don't know every secret."

Harry gave a snort, and Hermione grinned at him, giving him a playful push.

"Ok, so Riddle was first contact on August 2nd, 1937 by Dumbledore. So far it's all the same from my world. Though, there's no mention about Riddle wishing to go to Diagon Alley by himself, or anything else that may have happened during that meeting. Oh…" Harry looked surprised.

"What?" Hermione asked.

"He wasn't at an orphanage." Harry stated. "He was living with Martha and Frank O'Brien. I wonder if he'd been adopted, or in foster care. He got top marks in Charms, Defense, and Transfiguration as well as potions. But nothing else that year. Not even a visit to the hospital wing."

"Really?" Hermione asked a little puzzled. "That's unusual. Everybody gets sick every now and then."

"See for yourself." Harry said passing record over. "Second year looks to be the same. Top marks and nothing to note. Third year he took Runes and Arithmancy, and took top marks, and it looks like he got into a spot of trouble here. Caught in the Restricted section of the Library after curfew. Found by Professor Horace Slughorn. That's interesting. In my world the only teacher that Voldemort had any sort of connection to was Slughorn. He manipulated Slughorn into helping him in his quest for immortality."

"How?" "Hermione asked looking intrigued.

"He appealed to Slughorn's ego. Showered him with compliments as he asked questions, and made it all seem like it was for educational purposes. I think I might need to talk to Slughorn." Harry said thoughtfully.

"Can you commune with the dead?" Hermione asked and Harry looked up with puzzlement.

"Horace Slughorn was killed by Death Eaters in 1981." Hermione explained. "He was the last person who died before Voldemort's attack on Godric's Hollow. I guess now I know why he was killed. It wasn't just some random murder."

"Damn." Harry sighed as he continued looking through Voldemort's file. "There's no mention of special services to the school. He was a prefect in his fifth year, but not in his sixth or seventh, and he wasn't head boy. I wonder why he wasn't a prefect after his fifth year. There's nothing in here about any sort of disciplinary action, or about him refusing to continue on. Oh, this is interesting. He didn't graduate."

"He didn't?" Hermione looked horror struck. "Why?

"It doesn't say." Harry said. "Only that he left school in May of 1945. "And there's no NEWT transcript."

"So where does that leave you?" Hermione questioned as Harry slipped the file back into the drawer.

"No where." Harry replied. "With his name cursed so that no one remembers him, it's near impossible to find out where he went after Hogwarts. Which isn't to far from what the Voldemort in my world did, though he did take a job in a shop for a bit, then he murdered some old lady, stole her treasures, and disappeared for a number of years. I've got to assume that this Voldemort did similar, though I'm stymied. And without some kind of knowledge of his past, I have no idea where he might hide his Horcruxes."

"His what?" Hermione looked truly confused and Harry smiled.

"It's how he protected himself from death. They're horrible things, and the less you know about them the better."

"Harry I can…" She began and Harry held up his hands.

"I know you can take care of yourself." He cut her off. "But Dumbledore's already tried to make me out to be dangerous, and I don't need to add any fuel to that fire. I like talking with you."

Hermione gave him a soft, sort of shy smile. "I like talking with you as well."

They fell silent, just smiling at one another before Hermione indicated the file in Harry's hand. "Is there anything in there that might help?"

Harry looked at the records again, a grim expression on his face. He gave a small shrug, and then his eyes caught something he had missed. He flipped through the pages again, his face contorting into a look of bewilderment.

"He was in foster care." Harry said. "In his first year, the contact for any emergencis were the O'Brien's. Same as his second, but in his third year, it was someone named May Felton. And then his fourth year it was Conrad and Maggie Dunham. Then his sixth year it was William and Abigail Barton. And in his final year it was Michael and Allison Vernonia. If any of them are still alive, there's a chance they might have memories of him."

"But you said he cursed his real name so no one could remember it." Hermione reminded him.

"But that doesn't mean they won't still have the memories of him. A Legillimens would be able to find them." Harry said, looking for some parchment. He went to Filch's desk, and took a scrap, and used the caretaker's quill to make some notes. He handed the file to Hermione, asking her to put it back. When she was done, Harry led her out of the office.

"Where are we going now?" Hermione asked.

"Well, I need to talk to Dumbledore, so we can start trying to track down these people. After that, i thought maybe we could get something to eat. That is unless you have something else you need to do…"

Hermione smiled at the hopeful look on the boy's face and looped her arm around his.

"I could eat." She said and Harry smiled as he escorted her away.

* * *

"You know, I haven't been to a lot of cemetaries in my life, but I have to say this one is really bleak." Sirius Black said as he and his two companions entered the dreary graveyard. "Is it me or does it feel really oppressive."

"It isn't just you." Lily said looking around. "It sort of feels like we shouldn't be here."

"It's a spell." Remus said. "Look here."

Sirius and Lily turned and found Remus at the gate, stepping back and forth.

"It's definitely a spell. When you cross through the gates, that's when you begin to feel it." He explained. "It's almost like a muggle repelling charm or something."

Sirius tried, passing back through the wrought iron archway and smiling when he was on the other side. "It's like a weight was lifted."

Then Sirius turned and walked back through. "And there it is again."

"So we're thinking the Horcrux is here then." Lily said and the two men agreed.

"Yeah, I'm thinking the kid made a pretty good guess." Sirius agreed. "That bloke at the pub said the Riddle crypt was at the top of the hill."

Sirius led the way, followed by Lily and then Remus, who was watching the pair with interest. He and Sirius had stayed up late the previous night as Sirius vented about how being near Lily so much was killing him. Sirius had wanted to split up and have everyone search different places until Remus suggested that Lily might inadvertently walk into a trap. Sirius scowled at the thought, and then his resolve crumbled.

" _Why don't you just tell her?" Remus had asked and Sirius looked as if his friend had just suggested he kill a thousand puppies in front of a group of children._

" _You know why." Sirius had replied._

" _Do you really believe that James is going to resurrect himself to beat you for having strong feelings for Lily? A girl we all grew up with, and have all had feelings for at one time or another? And do you really think that he would be happy with her isolation? She deserves happiness, and James would want her to find that happiness, and if it was with his best friend, all the better."_

Sirius had come up with excuse after excuse as to why it was best if he kept Lily at arm's length, and Remus shot down each and every one. When Remus finally went to bed, he thought he had Sirius convinced that he had nothing to lose by coming clean, and that it was possible that Lily may have some feelings for Sirius. And judging by how nervous Sirius was today, Remus had every reason to believe that he had gotten through to his old friend. But Remus also knew how cowardly the dog could be when it came to things like this.

The trio trudged up the hill in tentative silence, where five stone buildings stood, each marked with a family name. The Riddle crypt was the nicest of the five, as well as the cleanest. Sirius tapped his wand on the heavy padlock and looked over his shoulder as it fell away. He opened the heavy gate and stepped inside. There was a small empty room with another gate, and a staircase descending into darkness.

"I guess we're going down." Sirius said over his shoulder.

Slowly and cautiously they descended. Sirius used his wand to cast light into the black. The stairs ended in a much larger hall. Both walls lined with gold plaques, each with the name of the corpse resting within.

"We're looking for Tom Riddle Sr.." Lily said, replacing the note that HArry had given, charmed with a compulsion to look at it every five minutes.

"It's this one." Remus said, pointing to a gold plaque. Lily used her wand to unseal the resting place of Tom Riddle Sr. The odor of decay was overwhelming, and Sirius quickly cast a fresh air spell to dissipate the foul air. Lily levitated the coffin out and set it respectfully on the ground.

"Do you feel that?" Remus asked. The others looked at him and nodded. There was a very oppressive feeling on them now. A sense of hopelessness gripping them. Remus opened his cloak and pulled the sword of Slytherin.

Sirius nodded when Remus indicated he was ready, and opened the lid of the coffin. The decayed body of Tom Riddle Senior lay inside, arms folded over his chest, his skeletal mouth wide open. His clothing was in tatters and cobwebs clung to the threads, holding it together. On his chest rested a silver chain which shone bright in Sirius's wand light. It was almost as if it had just been placed around the corpse's neck. The chain was attached to a medallion with a family crest on it.

"Do you recognize that?" Sirius asked.

"Let's just destroy it, we can figure out what it is later." Lily said, her voice trembling as badly as she was.

"Are we sure that's it?" Sirius asked.

"Look at it Sirius, it looks brand new. It should be filthy or…" Lily started but Remus cut her off.

"There's only one way to know." He nearly shouted as he stabbed the sword right into the medallion. There was a shockwave that sent all of them sprawling back. Lily hit her head on the bottom stair while both Remus and Sirius crashed hard into walls. It felt like hurricane strength winds were blowing in the crypt, and a strangled moan emanated from the coffin.

And then it stopped.

Slowly the three got back to their feet and approached the coffin which had crumbled. The corpse was now little more than dust. The necklace was still there, but now it was a twisted, blackened hunk of melted silver. Sirius bent, reaching for it when Lily stopped him.

"It might still be dangerous." She cautioned. Sirius nodded and emus used the sword to lift the ruined necklace. Lily conjured a small box and Remus laid the necklace inside.

"Okay." Sirius said, sighing in relief as he moved towards Lily to check her over after seeing blood on her cloak. She had a cut on the back of her head, but other than that she was alright.

"That was easy." He grinned, the others looking rather surprised.

* * *

Somewhere far from the graveyard, a man twisted and contorted in agony. He writhed on all fours, gritting his teeth. When the pain subsided, he spat a mouthful of blood on the floor as he heard a door open, and a concerned woman ask if he was alright.

Lord Voldemort rose, and his most faithful follower, his second mother Bellatrix gasped as she beheld him.

"My Lord." She started forward, arms reaching out to touch his face. "What has happened?"

Voldemort shoved her aside and stormed out of the room in search of a mirror. What he beheld caused him to smash his fist into the glass as he roared with anger.

His face had become discolored, paler, and the smooth skin had taken on a scaly texture. There were now three long cuts in his left cheek. They weren't bleeding, but they looked like raw open cuts. He held up his long fingers, and grimaced at his darkened nails.

He turned around, finding Bellatrix standing behind him looking extremely worried.

"Master?" she asked timidly.

"Bring me Severus!" Voldemort snapped.


End file.
